Roommates
by krystalsteph
Summary: They're just roommates, right?
1. The Invitation

I probably shouldn't be posting this because I haven't really got it all worked out yet, but oh well- I'm posting it.

This story begins in between season two episode eight and season two episode nine. Basically, Andy and Luke are broken up and Sam offers her his spare bedroom.

If anyone can come up with a better title for this story, please let me know because I'm not really a fan of the one I've got. Thanks!

=========Roommates===========

"C'mon Andy, I have a spare bedroom. Just stay with me," he offers.

"Sam no, I couldn't," she insists with a shake of her head.

"Andy, you really wanna keep sleeping on Nash's pull out couch until you find a place? Why would you do that when you could sleep in a nice comfortable bed?" He counters.

"Look, I really appreciate the offer, but I don't think it's a good idea," she tells him.

"Why not? Afraid you won't be able to stop yourself from sneaking in my room at night?" He teases.

She rolls her eyes. "Yep, that's it. You caught me," she replies, sarcastically.

"Seriously Andy, just come stay with me. You said yourself you haven't had a good night's sleep in weeks… My spare bedroom has a _really_ comfortable bed and no kids throwing cheerios at you at six A.M.," he reminds her.

She laughs at that. "Well, it would be nice to watch something other than cartoons at night," she muses.

He smiles. "So, it's settled," he decides. "Meet me at the truck in ten and we'll go pick up your stuff from Nash's, okay?" He asks.

She lets out a big sigh. "Okay fine," she agrees.

"Jeez McNally, don't sound so thrilled," he quips.

She rolls her eyes. "I hope you realize what you're getting yourself into. If you think I'm annoying now, just imagine how you'll feel after we have to spend all day every day with each other," she tells him.

"I think I'll survive," he says.

"Well, don't come crying to me when I'm driving you up the wall," she tells him.

"Mhm,"he mumbles as he rolls his eyes. "Just meet me at the truck in ten minutes, okay?"

"Okay," she agrees before making her way into the woman's locker room.

"Hey, I've gotta go pick up Leo from his Dad's. You wanna come with or can you find your own ride home?" Traci asks when Andy walks into the locker room.

"Uh actually…" Andy begins.

"What?"

"Um, Sam actually offered me his spare bedroom," Andy informs her, unable to look her in the eyes. She doesn't even want to see the look on Traci's face.

"What?" Traci asks.

"Yeah, well Trace, I really appreciate you letting me stay with you but…um, well… you have Leo and Jerry and I don't want to be in the way. And he has a spare bedroom. It's not a big deal… Just until I find a place and that will probably just be a couple more weeks," she rambles on.

"Andy, you are _not_ in the way," she insists.

"Trace, I know you aren't letting Jerry stay over because of me and you aren't going over to his place because you don't want to leave me alone. You have your own life. You should be enjoying it. It's fine, I'll just stay with Sam… Plus your pull out couch is kind of…"

"Awful?" Traci finishes for her.

"Uh, yeah," Andy laughs nervously.

"Okay, if you're sure, but if Swarek starts driving you crazy, you can always stay with me, okay? Seriously. You're not in the way," she swears.

"Thanks Trace," she says with a smile. "So is it okay if I come by and pick up my stuff? Sam said we could stop there on the way home," she informs her.

"Of course, but I'll probably still be picking up Leo, so I won't be there."

"Okay, well I'll lock up and give you back your key tomorrow," Andy offers.

"Okay… so you're really staying with Swarek?" Traci grins.

Andy rolls her eyes. "It's not a big deal," she insists.

"What? I think it's great. Super convenient," Traci laughs.

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Oh I don't know… gorgeous man just down the hall who will totally have sex with you whenever you want," she grins.

"We are not going to have sex!" she exclaims.

"Would it be so bad if you did?" Traci asks. "C'mon, you don't have to keep him on ice anymore," she reminds her.

"Traci! I just broke up with Luke!" Andy retorts.

"Best way to get over someone is to get under someone else!" Traci declares with a grin.

Andy rolls her eyes. "We're friends, okay? We aren't going to have sex," Andy promises.

"I bet he'd be _really_ good at it," Traci teases.

"I'm sure Jerry would just _love_ to hear how you're fantasizing about sex with his best friend," Andy retorts. "And that you think he's _gorgeous_ ," Andy adds.

"Oh and you don't?" Traci asks with a quirked eyebrow.

Andy rolls her eyes again. "Okay, I'm leaving now," Andy tells her.

"Oh c'mon Andy, I'm just teasing!" Traci calls after her as Andy walks out of the locker room.

=========Roommates===========

"Why don't you go unpack your stuff and I'll get us some dinner," Sam offers after he's given her the tour. She can't help but feel awkward about the whole thing, especially since she's been here before. Although, the last time she didn't see much of anything except his bedroom…

"Okay," she agrees before he starts walking down the hall towards the kitchen.

About fifteen minutes later, she appears in the kitchen to find him cooking.

"You're cooking?"

"Uh… yeah," he says, gesturing around the kitchen with an amused look on his face. Obviously he's cooking.

"I figured you'd get take out," she explains.

"Got something against a home-cooked meal, McNally?" He smirks.

"No," she says, shaking her head. "What are we having?"

"Steak tips, mashed sweet potatoes and green beans," he informs her.

"Wow… I didn't realize you were such a chef," she teases.

He shrugs.

"Can I help?" She asks.

"No, I've got it," he insists.

"C'mon, let me help," she pleads.

"Fine, you wanna mash the potatoes?" He asks.

"Yep!" She exclaims as she takes the potato masher and immediately starts mashing. "So uh maybe we should talk about how this is going to work," she suggests.

"What do you mean?" He asks, stealing a glance at her.

"Well uh I just… I don't want to be in the way," she explains.

"You aren't in the way, McNally," he insists.

She rolls her eyes. "Well, I just want you to know that if you uh… if you feel like you need some space or whatever, just let me know, okay? If you wanna have the guys over for poker night or uh I don't know… if you want to have a woman over or something, just tell me and I'll make myself scarce," she says, awkwardly.

"A woman?" He asks with raised eyebrows and a smirk. He just loves when she gets flustered like this.

"Yeah, I mean… I don't know if you're dating anybody right now but if you are or if you meet someone… I don't wanna cramp your style," she continues, unable to look him in the eye. God, why is she being so awkward all of a sudden?

"Cramp my style?" He repeats, highly amused.

"Shut up. I don't know," she says with a laugh.

He chuckles and shakes his head, good naturedly. "Okay well, I'm not dating anybody, so uh… you don't need to worry about 'cramping my style'," he tells her, using air quotes.

"Oh. Okay… I uh… I wasn't _worried_ ," she assures him. "And you never know… you might meet somebody tomorrow," she says.

"Yeah, you never know," he shrugs.

"Well, anyway, I really do appreciate this, Sam…. And I promise I won't overstay my welcome… I'll start looking for a place right away," she assures him.

"Andy," he says until he has her attention. "You can stay as long as you want. Seriously. I don't mind," he insists.

"Thanks," she smiles.

=========Roommates===========

"You wanna watch a movie or something?" He asks after they finish loading the dishwasher.

"Sure, what do you wanna watch?" She replies.

"Whatever you want… just look through what I have and pick something," he says, pointing to the shelf on his entertainment center that houses all of his DVDs.

"Maybe we should rent something? You probably just have _boy_ movies," she whines as she makes her way to look at his selection.

He rolls his eyes. "If you don't like anything I have, then we can rent something," he shrugs.

"Oh. My. God," she squeals from across the room.

"What?" He asks.

"Sam. You have The Little Mermaid," she declares with a huge grin on her face as she waves the DVD around in the air.

"So? My niece loves The Little Mermaid," he tells her with a shrug.

"We are totally watching this!" she exclaims.

"Um. No."

"Yes."

"No."

"Yes."

"McNally, do you know how many times I have seen The Little Mermaid?" He asks.

"No, but do tell," she grins.

He rolls his eyes. "It's the only thing Kayla ever wants to watch when she comes over," he argues.

She smiles as she imagines Sam sitting on his couch with a dark-haired little girl in his lap as they watch Disney movies together. "You know, I don't think you ever told me you have a niece," she comments as she puts the movie back. She figures she's tortured him enough for tonight.

"I also have a nephew," he informs her.

"Oh yeah? How old are they?" She asks, as she skims the rest of his DVD collection.

"Nate is six and Kayla is four," he tells her.

"And I'm sure they just love their Uncle Sammy," Andy teases.

"Of course they do. What's not to love?" He grins.

She laughs. "Okay, we are renting a movie," she decides as she stands up and walks over to the couch.

"My DVD collection not up to your standards?" He laughs.

"Well, you said you didn't want to watch The Little Mermaid, so… no," she teases.

"Okay, buy something off the TV… just no chick flicks," he tells her.

"Okay, no chick flicks," she promises.

=========Roommates===========

The next morning he wakes up to the smell of bacon. It takes him a minute to realize what the hell is going on, but then he remembers. McNally is staying with him. And she's making breakfast…

He glances over at the clock and realizes that it's time to get up anyway. He flips the covers off of him, brushes his teeth and goes in search of coffee.

And what he finds in his kitchen… yeah, he wasn't really expecting that.

She's wearing a camisole and these tiny cotton shorts that just cover her ass and not much else. And she's turned away from him, so he takes a moment to soak in the view. He's definitely never seen this much of her and yeah, he's going to enjoy it.

"Hey," she calls out to him, after a second. She's still not looking at him, obviously focused on scrambling the eggs.

"You making me breakfast, McNally?" he smiles, as he walks up to her and inspects what she's making.

"Mhm," she said, proudly. "Just wanted to say thank you for letting me stay here," she smiles.

"It's no problem," he shrugs. He's peering over her shoulder to see what she's doing when he asks, "is it edible?"

She elbows him in the stomach and he stumbles backward. "I was just teasing," he exclaims.

"Wasn't funny," she replies with a smirk.

"Okay. Okay. Sorry," he says, throwing his hands in the air in surrender.

She laughs and then takes a moment to look him over. He's wearing a thin t-shirt and pajamas bottoms that are hanging low on his hips. But what she's really enjoying is his hair. It's sticking up a little bit and it's kind of adorable.

"So… this is what you look like in the morning," she observes with a smirk.

"Uhh… yeah?" He replies, looking down at his body. When he shoots her a confused look, she smiles and reaches out to pat down his hair a little bit. He just watches her, obviously surprised by the interaction, but he's not totally hating it. After a second, she realizes what she's doing and she pulls her hand away, blushing a little.

"Your uh hair… it's uh… messy," she says with a shrug.

He lets out a small laugh. "Yeah, well so is yours," he says as he pushes some hair off her shoulder. "That's what happens when you've just woken up," he reminds her with a smile.

She rolls her eyes. "I know… just not used to seeing it like this," she tells him.

"Well yeah, I don't usually show up to work like this," he replies with a grin, obviously enjoying how uncomfortable she is right now.

She rolls her eyes again. "You want some breakfast or not?" She asks with faux annoyance.

"Yes please," he says with a smile as he reaches above her to get the plates. She takes them from him and puts some bacon and eggs on each one, while he pours the coffee.

Minutes later, they are sitting at his kitchen table eating together.

"I'm pleasantly surprised, McNally," he says after taking a few bites.

"I don't know why… I _can_ cook, you know," she tells him.

"Well now I do," he replies with a smile.

And yeah, she's rolling her eyes again, but the slight smile on her face is giving her away.

"I can't remember the last time I actually ate a real breakfast in the morning," he muses, after taking a sip of coffee.

"What, the women you _usually_ invite over don't make you breakfast in the morning?" She teases.

He looks up and stares at her for a minute, and suddenly, she's feeling a little uncomfortable. Why does she keep bringing up other women? She's desperately trying to come up with something to say that will make this not feel so weird, but then a small smile appears on his face and she takes a breath.

"Guess I'm just not inviting the right ones over," he says with a slight wiggle of his eyebrow.

"Guess not," she responds, with a small smile of her own.

=========Roommates===========

Okay, there is chapter number one. I hope you liked it!

PS- I'm using a little "artistic license" when it comes to Sarah. In this story, she is married with two kids and she and Sam are close.

Anyway, please review and let me know what you think. I have a few ideas for this story, but I'd love to hear some suggestions. And please, someone come up with a better title!

Thanks!


	2. The Morning After

Okay, I'm proud of myself. Three updates in one night. I rock.

Oh and thanks for the encouragement regarding the title. I'm actually coming around to it now so I'll probably just leave it.

To the guest who posted about my decision regarding Sarah, I think you have a really interesting point about Sam. It's not something I had ever considered before, but after thinking about it, I definitely agree with you. However, I decided to go off-canon with Sarah because I needed it to be this way in order for some of my ideas to work with this story. I don't actually have a problem with the Sarah from the show- although, I think it would have been interesting to see the dynamic between the siblings if they were close. My guess is that many people take issue with the Sarah from the show because the way that Sam talked about her in season one made it seem like they were close, so I think most people just imagined it that way and were surprised to find out that wasn't the case. I also did think it was a bit surprising that she and Sam hadn't spoken in two years. With everything that's happened to Sarah and Sam's obvious desire to protect her, I wouldn't think he'd let so much time go by without _at least_ checking in on her. Anyway, I'm rambling now. I just wanted to tell you that I thought you had an interesting and valid point and I appreciate you bringing it up.

Happy reading!

=========Roommates===========

"Was that McNally I saw getting out of your truck this morning?" Oliver asks Sam as they are changing into their uniforms.

"Yep," Sam replies. He's really not looking forward to _this_ conversation. And all of the teasing that is sure to come afterwards.

"Isn't Nash working today? I figured they would ride in together," Oliver continues fishing.

Sam just shrugs.

"And didn't you give her a ride home last night?" Oliver probes.

"Yep."

"That's awfully nice of you," Oliver tells him.

"Yep."

"Sammy," he says, suddenly serious.

"What?" Sam asks.

"C'mon," Oliver says with a raised eyebrow.

"She's staying with me, okay? No big deal. She needed a place to stay and I have a spare bedroom. That's it," Sam insists.

"Wow, that's um…sweet," Oliver says, a little bit stunned.

"She just needed a place to stay," he replies with a shrug. "It's really not a big deal. We're just… roommates," he tells him.

"Mhm. Maybe for now," Oliver grins.

Sam rolls his eyes. "What is that supposed to me?" Sam asks, although he already knows exactly what is friend is getting at. But he's definitely going to keep playing stupid.

"Oh come on. Everyone can see that there is obviously something between you two," Oliver informs him.

"She _just_ broke up with Callahan," Sam reminds him.

"Yeah, but c'mon… Does she really even seem that broken up about it? Embarrassed? Yes. Pissed? Yes. Devastated? No," Oliver continues. "If that happened to me when Zoe and I were engaged, I would have been in a drunken stupor for months. Yet, she sees more or less fine," Oliver tells him. "I'm not saying you should make a move or anything _right now_ , but… don't wait too long, okay? Girl like that won't stay on the market forever," Oliver tells him before shutting his locker.

Sam rolls his eyes and grumbles some incoherent words. Oliver laughs and they both walk to Parade together.

=========Roommates===========

"So how was the first night at Casa Swarek?" Traci grins, as they are changing into their uniforms.

"Fine," Andy shrugs.

"Fine? What'd you do?" Traci asks.

"Um. Sam made dinner and we watched a movie on the couch," Andy tells her.

"Seriously? He cooked you dinner and you snuggled up on the couch?" Traci grins.

"We did not snuggle," Andy insists.

"That sounds so… _cozy_ ," Traci teases.

"It was not _cozy_ ," Andy argues.

"Mhm."

"It wasn't," Andy insists.

"Whatever you say." Traci laughs.

=========Roommates===========

"So, I spoke with a realtor this morning," Andy mentions in between calls. It's been a rather slow morning so far, not that she minds.

"Oh yeah? When did you do that?" He asks.

"When you were in the shower," she replies.

"Oh."

"Yeah, so she's gonna show me a few options this weekend," Andy informs him. "So, hopefully I'll be out of your hair soon," she adds.

"Andy, I told you- you can stay as long as you want. I seriously don't mind," he tells her for the millionth time.

"I know, I just feel bad," she responds.

"Well don't. You're a pretty good houseguest. You made me breakfast," he reminds her.

"That's true, I did," she smiles.

"Yeah, so it's really not so bad having you around," he smirks as he glances over at her.

"Not so bad? Wow, you really know how to give a girl a compliment," she teases.

"Hey, I've given you plenty of compliments," he argues.

"Oh yeah? When?" She asks, incredulously.

"I said you were awesome once," he reminds her.

"Oh yeah. How sweet," she says with a playful roll of her eyes, causing him to laugh.

"After our undercover op, I told you that you did great," he says.

"Yeah, I literally save your life and all I get is a ' _you did great in there_ ,'" she scoffs.

"I said you had a lion's heart," he points out.

"That's true. That one was nice," she admits.

"I know, I'm a nice guy," he says with a proud smile.

She laughs.

"Are you saying I'm not a nice guy, McNally?" He asks with mock offense. "The man who literally saved you from being homeless is _not_ a nice guy?"

"Okay, you did _not_ save me from being homeless," she points out. "But yes, as much as you pretend not to be… you _are_ a nice guy," she smiles.

"Thank you."

"So… since you're such a nice guy… can I borrow the truck to look at apartments this weekend?" She asks with a big, bright smile.

He lets out a laugh and shakes his head. "Why don't I just give you a ride?" He asks.

"You really don't trust me with your truck, do you?" She asks.

"Well, the last time I let you drive it, you almost brought it back covered in bullet holes, so… no," he tells her.

"Yeah, _almost_. Plus, that wasn't my fault. Could've happened to anyone," she insists.

"No, I think that would _only_ happen to you," he responds.

"Fine, if you want to drive me you can, but it's gonna be long and boring and you'll absolutely hate every second," she warns him.

"You know, I _could_ make you take a cab… or walk," he reminds her.

"Yeah, but you wouldn't do that… since you're such a nice guy and all," she smiles, causing him to roll his eyes.

"Don't push it, McNally," he grumbles, making her giggle a bit.

=========Roommates===========

"Hey, so just come find me when you want to leave," he tells her as they walk through the parking lot on their way to the Penny.

"Sam, you don't have to babysit me, you know," she replies, glancing over at him.

"What?" He asks, shooting her a confused look

"You don't have to leave or stay just because I want to. I can find my own way home… I don't want you to feel like you have to constantly be… I don't know… taking care of me," she shrugs.

"Andy, relax. If I really wanted to leave or stay and you didn't, I would, okay? But we're both exhausted and I have a feeling neither of us will last very long in there, so just… come find me when you're ready to go home, okay?" He asks, as he reaches for the doorknob.

"Okay," she nods, before walking through the door. They both wave to their friends as they make their way up to the bar to get a drink.

"Just a beer," Sam says to the bartender once he finally has his attention. Then he looks over to Andy. "You want something?" Sam asks her.

"Make it two," Andy tells the bartender with a smile. She reaches for her wallet before Sam grabs her wrist to stop her.

"I got it," he tells her.

"Sam, c'mon. I got this one. You're already letting me stay with you. I can't let you buy my drinks, too," she rationalizes.

"Yeah, I guess you're right. You do kind of owe me," he teases, causing her to playfully roll her eyes.

"Hey, I did make you breakfast this morning," she reminds him as she pulls out some bills from her wallet.

"That's true… You know if I had known that I'd get breakfast and free drinks out of this, I would've asked you to stay with me a long time ago," he jokes.

She laughs at him and is just about to say something when they are interrupted by the sound of their drinks being put down in front of them. Andy hands the cash over to the bartender, picks up both beers and hands one to Sam.

"Thanks, McNally," he says before taking a sip.

"Anytime," she smiles.

"Okay, so just let me know when you want to leave, okay?" He asks her.

"Okay," she nods.

He gives her a smile before they go their separate ways. He heads over to Jerry and Oliver while Andy heads over to the rookies.

"Hey buddy," Jerry offers as Sam sits down across from him.

"Hey."

"So… I heard McNally is staying with you," Jerry mentions with a smirk.

Sam shoots Oliver a look and Oliver raises his hands in surrender. "He already knew," he insists.

"Traci told me," Jerry explains.

"Ah."

"So…" Jerry begins.

"So?" Sam asks.

"Is it official? You and McNally?" Jerry grins.

Sam rolls his eyes. "She's just staying in my spare bedroom… Was sick of sleeping on Nash's pull out couch. It's no big deal," Sam insists.

"Mhm… Well, I guess I should thank you," Jerry replies.

"What?"

"I can finally have sex with my girlfriend again," Jerry informs him.

Sam gives him a strange look- somewhere in between disgusted and confused, which causes Jerry to let out a laugh.

"Traci didn't want to leave her alone, so she wasn't staying at my place and she didn't want me going to hers while Andy was there, so yeah… it's been rough man… All I've gotten in the past few weeks is a couple quickies in my car or the interrogation room," Jerry explains.

"Jeez, Jerry," Sam snorts, before taking a sip of his beer.

"The two seater, really?" Oliver asks, incredulously.

"I told you. Rough," Jerry nods.

=========Roommates===========

It's two in the morning when he wakes up. At first, he's not sure what's gotten him up, but then he hears it again. He doesn't know what it is but it's coming from the kitchen. He lets out a groan and flings the covers off of him before heading down the hallway.

The lights are on and he figures it must be Andy, but why the hell is she awake? They were both exhausted when they got home; he figured she'd be asleep the moment her head hit the pillow.

He walks into the kitchen and squints at the bright lights. When his eyes finally adjust, he sees her kneeling on the floor with her head inside the refrigerator.

"Andy?" He says, causing her to jump. She sits back and looks up at him.

"Jesus, you scared me… What are you doing up? Shit, did I wake you? God, I'm sorry. Just go back to bed, I'll be quiet," she promises.

"What are you doing?" He asks, gesturing towards his fridge.

"Um… cleaning," she shrugs as a sheepish smile appears on her face.

"I see that. Why?"

"I couldn't sleep and this is… this is what I do when I can't sleep," she explains.

He nods and wipes his hand over his face. Then, he grabs her arm and pulls her up to a stand before closing his fridge.

"What's up?" He asks.

"Nothing, I'm fine," she insists with a shake of her head.

He shoots her a look, telling her that he's not buying it and she should just tell him.

She lets out a big sigh. "I just… I had a nightmare," she admits as she looks at the floor.

He nods, and lifts her chin with his finger so she'll look up at him. "What happened?" He asks.

She lets out another sigh. "I um… I was back in the storage locker."

He cringes at her words and for the hundredth time, he chastises himself for leaving her like he did. "That happen a lot?" He asks.

"Sometimes," she shrugs.

"You should've woken me up," he tells her.

"Sam, I'm not going to wake you up just because I had a nightmare, I'm not five," she tells him with a roll of her eyes.

"I wouldn't mind," he assures her. "I'm always here if you want to talk… or not talk… whatever you need," he tells her.

"I know," she says with a nod and a smile.

"So… _do_ you want to talk?" He asks.

"What is there to say? I was back in that storage locker and he was putting tape over my mouth and my eyes and he was choking me and I thought I was going to die," she tells him, trying to act nonchalant, but Sam knows better.

"Andy…." He begins, but honestly, he has no idea what else he's supposed to say. All of this is his fault. If he hadn't left her, she would never have been in that situation and she wouldn't be having nightmares. So, he makes the executive decision to just pull her into a hug. Apparently, it was the right move because she immediately wraps her arms around him and rests her head on his chest. They stay like that for a while as she continues to hold onto him and he runs a soothing hand up and down her back.

"It will get better," he tells her. "They'll go away eventually. It just takes time," he assures her.

She doesn't say anything, but he feels her nod against him.

"You wanna try going back to bed?" He asks after a few more minutes.

"Not yet, but you don't have to wait up with me. I know you're tired," she says as she pulls away and takes a step back.

"Why don't we go watch TV or something?" He suggests.

"Sam, really- it's okay," she insists.

"Come on," he says, grabbing her hand and leading her to other room. He sits down on the couch and gestures for her to sit beside him. She sighs and joins him on the couch, sitting so close that their thighs are brushing against each other. Not that he minds.

He smiles and tosses her to the remote. "You pick," he tells her. She smiles at him, turns on the television and starts flipping through the channels before landing on one she likes.

"Really McNally?" He asks, when he notices what she's chosen.

"What?" She asks, turning to look at him.

"You just completed a ten hour shift and you want to watch Law & Order?" He asks, incredulously.

She smiles. "What? It's a good show," she says with a shrug.

He shakes his head and chuckles before turning his attention to the television. As they watch, Andy makes several comments about the show, but as it goes on, he can tell she's starting to get tired. And then she rests her head on his shoulder, but the way she has her neck angled doesn't look too comfortable, so he decides to lift his arm and wrap it around her, so she can rest her head more comfortably. Without thinking, she leans against him and rests her head right below his collarbone. And just as he thinks she's fallen asleep, she readjusts her position so she's turned towards him a bit more and then wraps one arm around his stomach. And seconds later, she's actually asleep.

They stay like that for at least half an hour. He just wants to make sure she is really asleep. Plus, he doesn't hate the feeling of having her in his arms like this. But then his own need for sleep becomes too much. Plus, he knows she'll wake up with a crick in her neck if he lets her stay like this all night. So, he wriggles his way out of her grasp without waking her and then picks her up bridal style and carries her to her bed. She wakes up for a second when he picks her up and mumbles some incoherent words, before she wraps her arms around his neck and rests her head back on his chest, apparently content with allowing him to carry her to bed.

He kicks the door open with his foot and then lays her down on the mattress. He pulls the covers over her, takes one last look at her and then turns to walk out the door.

"Night Sam," she whispers. He turns to look at her, but her eyes are still closed. Part of him even considers that he may have imagined her words, but he's definitely not _that_ crazy.

"Night McNally," he replies, before making his way to his own bed.

=========Roommates===========

Okay, hope you enjoyed this!

Please review!


	3. Heating Up

Hey everyone, thanks so much for all of the great reviews! I appreciate every single one of them.

Just an FYI- I borrowed the poker night idea from tikvarn's _Spare Room_. I also paraphrased a couple lines so all credit goes to him or her. Just couldn't resist….

Hope you enjoy!

=========Roommates===========

"I can't believe you're doing equine training, McNally," Sam tells her as they ride into work the next morning.

"What? You don't like horses?" She asks.

"City boy, remember?" He comments.

"Ah, that's right… Well, _I_ like horses," she tells him.

"So, you're gonna leave me to join the horse police?" He asks, glancing over at her.

"Oh, you're gonna miss me. That's so sweet," she gushes.

"No. I'm just not looking forward to being partnered with Peck or Diaz," he replies.

"So you're saying _I'm_ your favorite rookie?" She asks, batting her eyelashes.

"Well, I've finally got you trained just like the way I like," he retorts with a grin.

She sends him a glare, causing him to let out a laugh.

"Well, just don't complain when I'm in a bad mood tonight. Being partnered with Diaz is like taking a refresher course in the rule book and Peck is like… ugh… well, you know… Peck," he says.

"I can't believe all this time I thought you found me annoying, but really, you actually _like_ riding with me," she grins.

"I don't know if I'd go _that_ far, McNally… You're just the lesser of five evils," he tells her.

"Is that your way of saying I'm your favorite?" she smirks.

"Saying you're my favorite rookie is not saying much, McNally," he reminds her.

"So I _am_ your favorite," she squeals.

"You are just a delight, you know that?" He asks, with the sarcasm practically dripping from his voice.

"You're totally gonna miss me!" She teases.

"You know, I could just drop you off right here… Make you walk the rest of the way," he threatens.

"Okay fine, I'll shut up," she agrees. "But don't worry, I'll miss you, too," she quips, wanting to tease him just a little bit more.

He shakes his head at her and rolls his eyes as he continues making his way to the station.

=========Roommates===========

"So…. how were the horses?" He asks, on their way home.

"The horses were fine… The people, not so much," she replies.

"What?" He asks, glancing over at her.

"I just wanted to get out of the city for a bit, you know? Ride some horses, get some fresh air, but of course, I can't go anywhere without having guys hit on me," she explains.

"Guys were hitting on you?" He asks. Yeah, he doesn't love hearing that.

"Yeah."

He glances over at her, waiting for her to continue, but she doesn't.

"Care to elaborate, McNally?" He asks.

"What? Oh uh, this creepy guy I went to academy with was there and he wouldn't leave me alone and then our instructor asked me out. Can you believe that? I mean, that's got to be against the rules," she muses.

"Um. Yeah."

"He literally gave me a better time so that I'd be more inclined to go out with him. Crazy, right?" She asks.

"Seriously? He did that?" Sam probes.

"Yep," she nods. "I don't know what it is about guys. It's like they just can't help themselves… They're constantly hitting on you and of course, it's never the guy you actually _want_ to hit on you," she muses.

"Oh, so there's a guy you _want_ to hit on you?" He asks, curiously.

"What? Oh uh… no. I was just saying… in general," she replies.

"Ah."

"Yeah."

"Okay."

"So uh… how was your day?" She asks, desperately wanting to change the subject.

"It was… eventful," he says.

"Care to elaborate, Swarek?" She asks, mockingly.

"You rookies are just… something else," he says, causing her to laugh.

"See, I knew you'd miss me," she grins, causing him to roll his eyes.

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"So, what do you feel like for dinner?" Sam asks, once they get home.

"Um… I don't know. I noticed this morning that your fridge is kind of lacking. We should probably go grocery shopping this weekend," she tells him.

"Take out it is," he declares. "I could go pick up a pizza?" He offers.

"Sounds perfect… I'm gonna go take a shower… unless you want some company?" She asks.

"That's okay. You go shower. I'll be back in half an hour," he tells her.

"K," she replies, before heading down the hallway towards the shower.

True to his word, Sam is back in just over thirty minutes and yeah, he's a bit taken back by what he comes home to. He can hear the music the second he gets out of his truck, but once he walks inside the house, he's confronted with quite the surprise.

She obviously doesn't hear him come in because when he walks into the house, she's dancing around his kitchen. Her hair is wet, she's changed into her flannel pajamas pants and navy camisole and she's emptying the dishwasher as she sings and dances along to some song he doesn't recognize.

He just stands there, leaning against the doorway, with the pizza still in hand, just enjoying the show. She's bopping her head and swaying her hips and she even throws in a few silly hand gestures, all while singing a little too loud to be considered normal.

"That was quite the performance, McNally," he tells her once the song is over.

"Oh shit! Jesus Sam, you scared me!" she squeals as she puts a hand over her heart. "Um how long have you been standing there?" She asks, suddenly remembering what she was doing before he spoke up.

"Oh, long enough," he grins.

"Uh…" she says as she turns the music off and a blush starts to spread up her neck.

"Is this what you do when I'm not home?" He asks with a smirk.

"Maybe," she admits with a sheepish smile.

"Well don't stop on my account," he tells her with a teasing smile.

She rolls her eyes. "Let's just eat," she says as she grabs for the pizza box.

"Okay, but I want an encore later tonight," he quips.

"Funny," she growls.

He lets out a laugh. "You want a beer?" He asks, deciding to let her off the hook… for now.

"Yes please," she says with a smile. He grabs two beers from the fridge and joins her on the couch.

"Oh, so my realtor had to reschedule to next Wednesday, so you're off the hook for this weekend," Andy tells him before taking a bite of pizza.

"Okay," he nods.

"I uh… I heard that Jerry is hosting poker night tomorrow," Andy says, after a few seconds of silence go by.

"Yep, I'll probably be home pretty late. You gonna be okay here by yourself?" He asks.

"Oh I don't know because I'm obviously a child," she says with a roll of her eyes.

"Okay, okay," he says, holding his hands up defensively. "Do you mind taking the truck home after shift? I'll probably grab a ride with Oliver when Zoe comes to pick him up," He explains.

"Really? You trust me to drive the truck _all_ the way home?" She asks with faux shock.

"Against my better judgment," he groans, causing her to let out a few laughs.

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"Sam, I promise, I'll be careful," she assures him the next night as he is handing her the keys to the truck.

"Remember, the breaks are-"

"Touchy, I know," she says, cutting him off and grabbing the keys from him.

"Right. Have a good night, McNally," he tells her with a smile.

"Good luck," she grins.

"Don't need luck. It's all skill," he says with a smirk.

"Mhm," she says with a laugh.

She ends up stopping at the Penny for a drink and a game of darts before heading home. After soaking in the tub with a glass of wine, she changes into her pajamas and curls up on the couch. At some point, she falls asleep because the next thing she knows, it's midnight and there are voices coming from outside and someone is banging on the door.

When she finally gets to the door, she opens it to find Sam and Oliver grinning up at her.

"Honey, we're home," Oliver sings with a drunken smirk on his face.

"Um. Hi?" she replies, still slightly half asleep. "Why didn't you use your key?" She wonders.

"You have my keys, remember?" He tells her with a smirk.

"Oh. Right…. What would you have done if I was sleeping?" She asks.

"Broken in, I guess," he shrugs. "You gonna let us in?" Sam asks with a grin.

"Oh. Yeah. Here, sorry," she responds, allowing them inside. "I figured you wouldn't be home for another hour or two," she says.

"Well, Jerry decided he'd rather have sex than hang out with his two best friends," Oliver explains.

"Huh?"

"Nash showed up," Sam clarifies.

"Oh," Andy laughs.

"Okay well, I better be off. Zoe is waiting outside," Oliver says, hooking his thumb over his shoulder. They exchange goodbyes and he's out the door.

The second the door is closed, she turns to Sam. "You couldn't have warned me that you were coming home? And bringing Oliver? Look what I'm wearing!" she exclaims. Since she wasn't expecting company, she had decided against putting her bra on, even though the white camisole she's wearing doesn't leave much to the imagination without it.

He looks her body up and down. "Or not wearing," he quips with a wiggle of his eyebrows.

She crosses her arms over her chest and frowns at him. "Seriously, you couldn't have given me some warning? I look ridiculous."

"No, you look pretty," he tells her, stunning her silent for a second while he makes his way further inside.

"You're drunk," she observes when she notices him stumble.

"Yes I am," he nods.

"Come on, let's get you to bed," she says with a laugh.

"I might be persuaded to let you take me to bed, McNally," he quips with a grin, causing her to roll her eyes. Still, she helps him upstairs and once they get into his bedroom, he flops down on the bed.

"So, did you win?" She asks, as she starts to remove his boots.

"Of course I won… Pretty sure Jerry just used Nash as an excuse so I'd stop taking all his money," Sam muses with a cocky grin.

"Oh yeah, because guys never choose sex over poker," Andy laughs as she tosses Sam's boots aside.

"Hm… true," Sam agrees as Andy stands up.

"Okay, come on. Get up," she says, holding her hand out for him. He takes it and she helps him stand up. Then, she unzips his jacket, pushes it off his arms and tosses it on the chair before going to remove his shirt.

"Trying to take advantage of me, McNally?" he grins.

"What? No!" she exclaims, taking a few steps back.

"So, just undressing me for fun then?" He asks with a smirk.

"No! I thought… It seemed like… it seemed like you needed help… You weren't stopping me!" she reminds him.

"Sorry… when beautiful women start taking my clothes off, I tend to let them," he explains, making her blush. Sam has never been this flirty with her before and she doesn't totally hate it. "So uh… you gonna keep going or-"

"I think you can handle it," she laughs.

He shrugs and lifts his shirt over his head before removing his jeans. Then, he walks into the bathroom in just his boxers and brushes his teeth. When he comes back in his bedroom, she's got a glass of water and some Advil for him. He gets into bed, swallows the Advil and takes a sip of water.

"You take such good care of me," he muses as he places the water on his nightstand.

She laughs. "This is purely self-preservation. I'm the one who has to deal with you tomorrow when you're cranky and hungover," she reminds him.

"Oh yeah?" he ask with a quirked eyebrow.

"Yeah."

That's when he grabs her wrist, pulls her down on his lap and starts incessantly tickling her. She's flailing around, laughing, gasping for air and begging him to stop.

"Okay, okay, I take it back!" she surrenders after a minute.

"That's what I thought," he says as he releases her. She lies there for a moment, trying to catch her breath.

"This is what I get after I take such good care of you?" She pouts, still lying on his lap.

He shrugs and shoots her a grin, causing her to roll her eyes as she finally gets up off of him.

"Night Sam," she tells him before walking towards the door.

"Night McNally."

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Please review!


	4. Introductions

So this is kind of a filler/transitional chapter, so I hope it doesn't disappoint.

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It's 10 o'clock when he wakes up to the smell of coffee. He was definitely taking advantage of his day off, but of course Andy is wide awake. A few minutes later, he rolls out of bed, brushes his teeth and takes a quick shower.

"Morning, McNally," he says when he walks into the kitchen to find her watching television in her pajamas.

"Hey. Sleep well?" She asks.

"Mhm," he says as he pours himself some coffee. "What about you? You been up long?" He asks.

"No, just got up," she tells him.

"What time are we meeting the realtor?" He inquires.

"At 12:30, so we should probably leave here around noon," she tells him.

"Okay," he says after taking a sip from his mug.

"Want me to make some breakfast?" She asks.

"Why don't I run out and grab some bagels?" He suggests.

"I could go for some bagels," she smiles.

"Okay, I'll be right back," he tells her before grabbing his keys and heading out the door.

While Sam is gone, she decides she should probably go take a shower. She's in the middle of trying to figure out what to wear when she hears the doorbell, so she wraps herself in a towel and runs to the door.

"I'm coming, I'm coming," she says when the doorbell rings again. She quickly opens the door to find a beautiful brunette woman she doesn't recognize on the other side.

Both women seem to be stunned silent as they continue to stare at each other. Andy has no idea who this woman is and she begins to wonder if maybe Sam _is_ seeing someone. But then, why would he lie to her about it?

"Oh uh sorry, I didn't realize Sammy had company…" the woman says nervously.

"Uh…" Andy says as she suddenly remembers that she's wearing nothing but a towel. "I was just taking a shower," Andy explains as she tighten the hold on her towel.

"Yeah, I assumed," the woman laughs.

"Right." She's silently chastising herself for being so stupid in front of Sam's… whoever she is. And seriously, who is she? Is she his girlfriend? And why does she have to be so pretty? And why does that bother her so much?

"I'm Sarah," she says, sticking her hand out for Andy.

Oh. Sarah. Sam's sister. Right. "Andy," she says, finally able to relax.

"Oh you're Sam's partner, right?" Sarah asks.

"Um yeah," Andy says, surprised that Sam would have mentioned her to his sister.

"Sammy talks about you a lot… He didn't tell me you two were dating," she admits.

"Oh no, no we're not… He's just letting me stay here for a bit… until I find a new apartment," she says.

"Oh."

"Yep," Andy nods as the two of them continue to stand there awkwardly. "Oh um come in, sorry I… uh, just… come on in," she says, fumbling over her words.

"Thanks," Sarah says with a smile.

"Um Sam just went out to get some breakfast… he should be back any minute now," she explains.

"Okay, well don't feel like you need to entertain me… I can just wait here," she says as she sits down at the kitchen table.

"No, no, it's fine… I should probably just go change," she says. But as soon as the words leave her mouth, the front door opens.

"McNally, they didn't have those cheddar bagels you like so I just got-" he stops when he sees the scene in his kitchen. "Sarah, what are you doing here?" he asks, before turning his attention to Andy. "McNally, you're wearing a towel," he observes.

"Really? I hadn't noticed," she says with a roll of her eyes as Sarah lets out a laugh. "I had just gotten out of the shower when the doorbell rang," she explains. "I'm gonna go change," she declares. "Oh did you get me a sesame?" she asks.

"Of course," he smiles.

"Thanks!" she exclaims before hurrying down the hallway. When he hears her bedroom door shut, he turns to his sister.

"So… that's Andy," she smiles.

"That's Andy," he nods.

"She's staying with you," Sarah points out.

"Yep."

"She left that Detective?" Sarah asks.

"Yep."

"Well, you must be happy," Sarah smiles.

"Uh… sure… he definitely wasn't good enough for her if that's what you mean," he replies, uneasily.

"Mhm," she says with a roll of her eyes.

He shakes his head and decides to change the subject. "So, what are you doing here?" He asks.

"What? I'm not allowed to drop in on my baby brother?" she smiles.

"Sure you are, but you usually have a reason," he tells her.

"I just needed to get away for a few hours," she admits.

"You guys get in a fit or something?" He assumes.

"Or something," she shrugs.

"What's up?"

"The in-laws are staying with us for the week," she explains.

"Ah."

"Yeah, so can I hang out for a bit?" She asks.

"Sure, but we were going to go meet the realtor after breakfast… Andy's looking for a new place," Sam informs her as he starts to pull the bagels out of the bag and slice them in half.

"Wow um… that's cute," Sarah teases.

"What's cute?" Sam asks.

"You going apartment hunting with her. That's cute," Sarah says with a grin.

"It's not cute," he assures her. "She just needed a ride. It's no big deal," he shrugs. "Did you eat?" He asks, holding up a bagel.

"Yeah, I'm good," she tells him.

"Okay."

"So I guess I'll just come with you guys," she offers.

"Oh uh… that's okay. I'll just let McNally take the truck," he decides. He really doesn't need Andy and his sister hanging out together for too long. He can only imagine how _that_ will go.

"Wow, you're gonna let her drive the truck?" Sarah says in complete awe.

"It's just a truck," he shrugs again, as he puts the bagels in the toaster oven.

" _I_ know that, but I didn't realize _you_ knew that," Sarah replies.

"Funny," he says with a roll of his eyes. Then, Andy suddenly reappears, fully clothed this time.

"So, Sammy says you two are going apartment hunting today," Sarah says as Andy walks into the kitchen.

"Oh uh yeah, but I can just take a cab or maybe Traci or Chris can give me a ride. You should spend time with your sister," she tells Sam.

"I'll just come with," Sarah suggests.

"Oh. Are you sure? It's not going to be much fun," Andy warns.

"Trust me, anything is better than what I would be doing at home," Sarah explains.

"The in-laws are in town," Sam explains when he notices Andy's confused look.

"Ah," Andy nods. "But still, I'm sure there are tons of other things you'd rather be doing," Andy says.

"Nope, this will give me a chance to get to know my baby brother's partner," Sarah replies. "And I can finally hear a slightly less biased version of the day you two met," Sarah grins.

Andy laughs. "I can only imagine the version Sam told you."

"Well, there was definitely a lot of colorful language," Sarah chuckles.

"Yeah, I'm sure," Andy replies as she playfully rolls her eyes.

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A few hours later, the three of them walk back into Sam's house together. Although she didn't find anything close to inhabitable, apartment hunting was actually a lot more fun than Andy thought it would be. She really enjoyed getting to know Sarah and seeing the dynamic she and Sam have. Growing up, she had always wanted a sibling and seeing Sam with his sister made all of those feeling resurface.

"Well, I should probably get going before they start to think I ran away," Sarah says after looking at her watch. "You're coming to Nate's birthday this weekend, right?" She asks Sam.

"Of course," he assures her.

"And Andy, if you wanted to come with… I might have some baby pictures locked up somewhere I could show you," Sarah teases.

"You're just hilarious today," Sam growls.

"I'm serious, if you want to come, we'd love to have you," Sarah tells Andy. "There will be cake and good food and… face painting," Sarah smiles.

Andy shoots a look at Sam, trying to figure out if he's okay with this. He smiles and shrugs at her, so she figures he's not totally disgusted with the idea.

"How can I say no to face painting?" Andy asks with a smile.

"Great, then we'll see both of you this weekend. The kids will love to meet Uncle Sammy's partner," she says, shooting her brother a big smile.

"Can't wait," Andy replies.

Sarah smiles and pulls Andy into a hug. "It was really nice to meet you," she tells her.

"You, too," Andy responds.

"Bye Sammy," Sarah says as she pulls her brother into a hug. "I really like her," she whispers in his ear.

"Bye Square," he says, before walking her to the door.

When he returns, he finds Andy sprawled out on the couch. "I forgot how exhausting it is to try to find a home," she muses as she hears Sam come back into the room. He picks up her legs, sits down and lays them back on his lap.

"Yeah…. Hey listen, you don't have to go this weekend if you don't want to," he tells her.

She lifts her head to look up at him. "Do you not want me to go?" She asks.

"No, I uh… I want you to, I just don't want you to feel like you _have_ to," he explains.

"I think it'll be fun," she tells him. "Your sister is really great," she tells him.

"She has her moments," he agrees.

"So what does your nephew like?" Andy asks.

"What does he like?" Sam repeats, obviously confused by the question.

"Yeah… I have to get him a present," Andy explains.

"McNally, you don't have to get him a present," he tells her.

"Of course I do!" She says, shooting him a look as if he's the biggest idiot in the world. "What did _you_ get him?" She asks.

"Dinosaurs. He loves dinosaurs," he informs her.

"Hm, okay. I can work with that," she says as she starts to consider what to get him.

=========Roommates===========

Please review!


	5. The Birthday

Here's a nice long chapter for you! Enjoy!

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He is just about to open the front door when he stops and turns to look at her. "Can you hold this?" He asks, handing her Nate's present.

"Um…. Sure," she agrees, not sure why he can't hold it himself. Though, she doesn't have much time to wonder because two seconds after he opens the door, a tiny dark haired little boy comes running towards Sam at full speed.

"Uncle Sammy!" he exclaims as he jumps into Sam's arms.

"Happy birthday, buddy," Sam grins as he rests the little boy on his hip.

"Thanks!" the little boy replies with a big grin, exposing his missing front tooth.

They stand there for a minute, hugging before Sam finally speaks up. "Nate, this is Andy," he says, gesturing towards her.

"Hi," the little boy says with a smile. "I'm Nate," he adds.

"Hi Nate," Andy smiles. "Happy birthday," she adds.

"Thank you," he replies, before turning back to his uncle. "Is she your girlfriend, Uncle Sammy?" He asks, curiously.

Sam laughs. "No buddy, we work together… were partners," he responds.

"How come?" He wonders.

"How come we're partners?" Sam asks.

"How come she's not your girlfriend?" Nate clarifies.

Sam lets out a laugh and glances over at Andy, giving her a smirk that says he's about to give her a hard time. "I don't know, buddy. Maybe you should ask her," he suggests.

"How come you're not Uncle Sammy's girlfriend?" Nate asks, turning to Andy again. "He's the best," he adds with a smile, causing Sam to chuckle.

Andy's jaw has dropped and she has absolutely no idea what to say. Sam is just standing there smirking, while Nate waits for her answer. "Uhh…." She begins.

"Look Kayla! Uncle Sammy's here!" Sarah exclaims as she walks into the room with a visibly tired little girl on her hip. "She just woke up from her nap," Sarah explains.

Andy lets out a huge sigh. She's saved. Thank God. But she definitely makes sure to send a glare at Sam for putting her in that position to begin with.

Sam puts Nate down before Sarah passes Kayla to him. "Hey Jellybean," he says as the little girl wraps her arms around his neck and rests her head on his shoulder.

"Hi," she whispers as Sam runs his hand up and down her back and Kayla starts to eye Andy.

"Andy, I'm so glad you came," Sarah greets her. "Here, let me take these," she says as she takes the gifts from her.

"Thanks," Andy replies.

"Hey Kayla, I want you to meet Andy," Sam says.

"Hi Kayla," Andy smiles and gives her a little wave.

"Hi," Kayla replies, obviously still a little shy from her sleepiness.

They all stand there awkwardly for a moment before a man walks into the room.

"Sammy!" the man exclaims.

"Hey Troy," Sam says, holding out his hand, while the other one holds onto the little girl. Troy grabs his hand and pulls him in for a quick hug, making sure he doesn't squish his daughter. When they pull away, Sam turns towards Andy. "McNally, this is my brother-in-law, Troy," he tells her. "This is Andy," he says, when he turns back towards Troy.

"Andy, I've heard so much about you," he says with a smile as he holds out his hand for her.

"That's comforting," she quips, sarcastically, causing the three other adults to laugh.

"Only great things, I promise," Troy assures her.

"I find _that_ hard to believe," she says, shooting Sam a teasing look. He wiggles his eyebrows and sends her a smile.

"Okay let's get out of the hallway. Come on," Sarah says, gesturing further into the house. She leads everybody into the other room where an older couple is sitting on the couch.

"Andy, these are my parents, John and Cindy," Troy tells her when they enter the family room. "This is Andy," Troy tells his parents.

"So nice to meet you," Andy says as she smiles and shakes both of their hands.

"Wow, Sammy never introduces us to the women in his life," Cindy observes as her eyes brighten and she glances at Sam. "You must be pretty special," she adds with a smile.

"Cindy, Andy is Sam's partner," Sarah explains, mentally kicking herself for not having a talk with her mother-in-law before they arrived. She sends Sam and apologetic look, but thankfully he seems amused by the whole thing.

"Ah," Cindy says with a nod. "Well still, Sammy's never brought anybody to any of these family events. You must be pretty important to him," Cindy continues.

"Well, I don't think Sarah gave him much choice," Andy laughs, trying to stay clear of any potential awkwardness.

Cindy looks like she's about to say something more, but luckily the doorbell rings and the topic gets changed.

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"Seriously Sammy, how the hell do you get any work done looking at _that_ all day long?" Sam's cousin, Jeremy, asks him as he gestures towards Andy, who is painting a flower on Kayla's cheek.

Sam rolls his eyes and takes a sip from his beer.

"There's really nothing going on between you two?" Jeremy probes.

"Just friends," Sam tells him, as he looks over at Andy and Kayla, who are both giggling together. He takes another sip of his beer in order to tame down the smile that's threatening to escape.

"I jusr don't understand how you could ride around in a car all day with a woman like that and not do anything about it," Jeremy comments.

Sam shrugs and takes another sip.

"So what, you're not interested?" Jeremy asks.

"What's with all of the questions?" Sam growls. He really wants this conversation to be over. His cousin is one of the last people he'd ever want to discuss Andy with. He's never had an actual problem with the guy, but he's kind of a douche bag and they definitely aren't close.

"Just trying to figure out how upset you'd be if I asked her out," Jeremy explains with a smirk.

"Seriously? You want to ask her out?" Sam asks, incredulously. "You haven't even said three words to her," Sam points out.

"What? Sammy, you can't tell me you haven't noticed how hot she is," Jeremy replies. "Plus, who needs conversation?" He grins.

Sam just stares at him, like he can't believe this is actually happening right now.

"So…" Jeremy begins.

"So?"

"You okay if I ask her out?" Jeremy asks.

Sam barely holds in the groan that's threatening to flee his lips. "Yeah. Fine. Do whatever you want," Sam replies, trying to sound way more sure than he is. In reality, the thought of anything happening between Andy and his cousin is seriously repulsive.

"Great. Thanks buddy!" He says with a pat on Sam's back, before he walks across the room and sits beside Andy and Kayla.

Sam spends the next two minutes not-so-subtly watching as Andy laughs at something that Jeremy says. And yeah, Sam pretty much regrets his decision almost instantly. He was sure that there was no way Andy would ever be interested in Jeremy, but now, he's starting to have doubts. She's smiling and she's laughing and she looks like she's actually enjoying herself.

A million thoughts race through Sam's mind at once. What if she agrees to go out with him? What if he has to watch her date someone else again? And not just anybody else - his cousin. God, he is such an idiot. Why did he tell Jeremy it was okay? Why couldn't he just have told him that it'd be too weird? That would have worked. It was a completely plausible excuse. And then none of this would be happening. Oh and now they're laughing again. Perfect.

"You okay?" Sarah asks as she walks over to her brother.

"What? Oh yeah, I'm fine," Sam lies.

"Really? Because you look like you're about to beat Jeremy over the head," Sarah says with a laugh.

"What are you talking about?" Sam asks, playing dumb.

"He's flirting with Andy," Sarah points out, as if that explains everything.

"So?" Sam asks, impatiently.

"So… you obviously don't like it," Sarah replies.

"Why would I care if he flirts with Andy?" Sam questions.

"Really?" Sarah asks with a quirked eyebrow. "I'm not blind, Sammy… you obviously have feelings for her. Why is that so hard for you to admit?" She asks quietly so their conversation is not overheard.

"We're just friends," he tells her.

"Sure you are," Sarah says with a roll of her eyes.

"We are," Sam assures her.

"Maybe for now, but that can change," Sarah reminds him.

Sam doesn't respond; instead, he just takes another sip of his beer.

"She's really great, you know?" Sarah continues. "And it's obvious that she makes you happy… Seeing the two of you the other day, I just… I can't remember the last time I saw you smile like that," she tells him. "We were doing something completely boring, but you were happy… because you were with her," Sarah explains. "And I'm pretty sure she feels the same way about you," Sarah adds.

Sam glances over at her with a questioning look and apparently, Sarah can read his mind because a moment later, she keeps going. "Look, I obviously don't know her that well, but she seemed pretty happy the other day, too," Sarah tells him.

"She's always happy," he tells his sister with a dismissive wave of his hand.

"Ok well, I just wish you would open yourself up a little bit… the two of you could be really great together," Sarah tells him.

"Look," he says, turning to face his sister. "She just got out of a relationship. It's barely been six weeks… I'm giving her… time," he explains. And he honestly surprises himself when he says it. Sure, he's close with his sister, but the fact that he's admitting this to her is a bit unexpected.

"Okay," Sarah says with a nod. She's also a little taken back by his confession, but she plays it off well. "That's perfectly reasonable… I just… I just want to make sure that's the _real_ reason you're waiting and it's not just an excuse because you're afraid it won't go the way you want it to," she informs him.

When he doesn't respond, she knows she's on the right track. "Sam," she says with a sigh. "You can't let fear stop you from trying to be happy," she tells him. "Yeah, there's a possibility that maybe she doesn't feel the same way or maybe she does and you guys give it a try and it doesn't work out, but if you don't at least _try_ … you'll never know and you'll always wonder. You don't want to have regrets," she reminds him. "And you could be missing out on something really amazing… and I don't know… seeing the two of you together, I think it _would_ be something really amazing," she tells him with a smile.

"Yeah… yeah, I know," he says, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Like I said, I'm giving her time," he repeats. "Although it might be a moot point if Jeremy has something to say about it," Sam groans as he glances across the room for the umpteenth time in the last ten minutes.

"I can't believe he's flirting with her in front of you," Sarah exclaims.

"I may have… told him it was okay to ask her out," Sam admits, already knowing that his sister is about to lecture him.

" _Sammy_ ," she says with exasperation

"I know," he concurs.

"Why would you do _that_?" She asks.

"I didn't think she'd actually go along with it!" He replies. "I mean, seriously? Jeremy?" Sam adds. Although, now that he thinks about it, he really should have known better. She did agree to marry Callahan after all.

"Okay, well I will take care of the Jeremy problem," Sarah declares.

"What? No Sarah, just stay out of it," he pleads.

"Don't worry, I'll just put a little bug in her ear," Sarah says with a smile before she walks over to Andy and Jeremy, leaving Sam standing there having no idea what the hell he should do.

"Jeremy," Sarah calls as she walks up to the two of them. "Can you help Troy with the barbeque? God knows, we can't trust him with that kind of thing," she says with a laugh.

"Sure," Jeremy agrees. "I'll be right back," he tells Andy, before walking towards the deck.

"Just thought I'd rescue you," Sarah tells Andy with a wink.

"He's quite the character," Andy chuckles.

"He's my cousin and I love him, but he's kind of a douche when it comes to women," Sarah admits.

"Yeah, I was starting to get that impression," Andy agrees. And Sarah visibility relaxes. "He has some very… interesting lines," she continues. "I pretty much burst out laughing at least three different times," she says with a chuckle. "But still, he didn't seem too deterred… I guess he thought I was laughing _with_ him," Andy continues. "I mean, there's no way that's actually worked for him before, right?" Andy asks.

"I don't think I _want_ to know," Sarah replies, causing Andy to giggle.

Just then Kayla comes running back towards them. "I got the other colors, Andy!" Kayla exclaims, holding up some pink, yellow and green face paint.

"Awesome! Let's finish those flowers!" Andy grins as she takes the face paint and helps Kayla back onto the chair.

"I think you have a fan," Sarah laughs as she runs her fingers through her daughter's hair.

Andy grins at her and starts painting some more small flowers on Kayla's cheek.

"Uncle Sammy! Look what Andy's painting!" Kayla exclaims as she notices her uncle waking over.

"Wow, looks great," Sam observes with a smile.

"Are you gonna get _your_ face painted?" Kayla asks with bright eyes. "Andy's _really_ good at it. She'll draw _whatever_ you want," she tells him.

Andy lets out a chuckle and looks up at Sam with a smile. "I could draw you a rainbow," she grins. "Or maybe a butterfly," she adds.

He playfully rolls his eyes at her before turning towards his niece. "I just don't think it would look as pretty on me," he tells his her, causing her to give him a big smile.

"What about a mustache?" Andy asks with a smirk, not wanting to let him off the hook so easily.

"Hmm… I don't think I could pull off a mustache," he retorts.

"Really Sammy? I bet you could pull it off," Sarah says, joining in on the fun.

"You know," Sam begins, as he turns back towards Kayla. "I bet Mommy would _love_ to get some rainbows and butterflies all over her face," Sam suggests with a twinkle in his eye.

"Yeah Mommy, we can match!" Kayla grins.

Sarah glares at her brother, who sends her a smirk in return. "Sounds great, sweetheart."

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"Thanks a lot for this, Sammy," Sarah says sarcastically as she walks up to him with a big flower on her cheek.

"Hey, you started it," he reminds her.

She rolls her eyes at him and takes a sip of her hard lemonade. "So… there's nothing to worry about with Jeremy and Andy," she tells him. "She's not interested."

"I wasn't _worried_ ," he lies.

"Mhm."

"Fine, maybe just a little," he admits.

"Well, don't worry. She was laughing _at_ him, not with him," Sarah chuckles.

Sam laughs and takes a sip of his beer.

"The kids love her," Sarah comments as she glances across the room where Kayla is sitting on Andy's lap as she draws a dinosaur on Nate's shoulder.

"Yeah," Sam agrees with a smile.

They stand there in silence for a few seconds just watching the interaction between Andy and the kids, before Sam turns back to him. "You're still babysitting on Wednesday, right? Remember, it's our anniversary? We're going out to dinner," she reminds him.

"Oh, right. Yeah, I'm still babysitting," he tells her.

"Okay good," she replies.

"So, how long's it been?" He asks.

"Eight years," she answers with a smile as she glances over at her husband, who's standing on the other side of the room.

"Wow."

"Yep. Best thing I ever did," she informs him, as if she's trying to send him some kind of message.

"God, you never quit, do you?" He asks.

She lets out a laugh, but then turns towards him with a serious look on her face. "I know you've always thought that settling down and being committed to someone is boring, but… at the risk of being completely corny, if you find the right person it really is the best thing you'll ever do," she tells him.

It's true. He has always been the no-strings guys who doesn't answer to anybody, but lately… lately, he's been feeling like he wouldn't mind having a few strings.

"And you want a family someday, don't you?" She asks.

The question catches him a little off guard, actually, and he's not really sure what to say. It's a little crazy, but he's actually not as averse to the idea as he used to be. "Yeah, maybe someday," he shrugs.

She grins. "Well, you're not getting any younger, Sammy. And I want some nieces and nephews," she tells him.

"Oh, well I'll get right on that, then," he replies, sarcastically.

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It's a few hours later when Sam and Andy are standing in the doorway saying their goodbyes.

"Bye Andy!" Nate and Kayla exclaim as they wrap their arms around her neck and she uses each arm to pull them both in for a hug.

"I think you might have some competition," Sarah laughs as she gently elbows Sam in the stomach.

Sam lets out a chuckle as he watches his niece and nephew fawn all over Andy. "Hey, what about me?" He asks with a mock pout. Both kids turn and jump into his arms after he kneels down to reach their height.

"Bye Uncle Sammy!" they sing together. As Sam hugs them goodbye, he looks up to find Andy watching the exchange with a big grin on her face.

"Okay guys, we gotta get ready for bed soon. You'll see your Uncle Sammy on Wednesday, remember? He's gonna watch you guys for Mommy and Daddy's anniversary," she reminds them.

"Are you gonna be there, Andy?" Nate asks, immediately whipping around to face her.

She quickly glances at Sam before looking down at the little boy with a smile. "Wouldn't miss it," she grins.

"Mom, Andy's gonna be there!" Nate exclaims, as if his mother hadn't witnessed the conversation herself.

"I heard," Sarah says with an excited smile. When Nate turns away, she catches Sam's eye and her smile widens, causing him to roll his eyes a bit.

"Okay, well I'll see you guys on Wednesday," Sam says as he ruffles Nate and Kayla's hair. "Bye Sis," he says as he leans in and gives her a kiss on the cheek.

It takes another five minutes before they are finally on the road.

"I hope you don't feel like you got roped into babysitting," Sam mentions after a few minutes. "I probably should've warned you, but I kindda forgot," he admits. "But I can just tell them that you had to work or something, if you want to get out of it," he assures her.

"No way, it'll be fun," she tells him. "You just don't want me around because you're afraid they like me better," she playfully accuses.

"Oh, is that right?" He asks with a smirk.

"Yep. I'm on to you, Sam Swarek!" she exclaims, causing him to laugh.

He glances over and they share a quick smile before his eyes return to the road. Truth be told, he's kind of looking forward to babysitting with Andy. Not that he would ever say that out loud.

"I had a lot of fun," she tells him. "Thanks for inviting me."

"Well, I didn't exactly invite you," he reminds her with a smirk.

She rolls her eyes. "Well, thanks for letting me come," she amends.

"You're welcome," he replies. He glances back over at her and smiles again. "I'm glad you came," he tells her.

She turns to look at him and they share another smile. "Me too."

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Well, there's chapter five. Hope you liked it.

As always, please review!

They are my motivation to keep writing and to update faster!


	6. Babysitting

Okay, here's the latest edition…

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She's been doing a really good job of avoiding him at work. She's been forced to exchange a few words here and there when he arrives at a scene she's working, but their location coerces him to remain professional so it's all been perfectly fine.

At first, he was calling her all the time. He would leave voicemails and send texts; he even wrote a couple lengthy e-mails. So yeah, she made a serious effort to avoid being even somewhat alone with him.

Eventually, the number of phone calls and text messages decreased. He would still call her sometimes if he had too much to drink at the Penny, but for the most part, it seemed like he was finally getting the picture.

But still, when she sees him walking towards her in the parking lot, she cringes. There is no one else near them and she can already tell that he's gearing up to say something to her.

She pulls her phone out and pretends to be hyper focused on whatever is on the screen, hoping that he just might leave her alone. But yeah, she knows it's a long shot.

"Andy," he calls, as he tugs on her arm to get her attention.

She sighs and looks up at him. The look on his face tells her that this conversation won't be fun. He looks a bit… pissed.

"We haven't even been broken up for a month and you're already shacking up with Swarek?" He asks with exasperation. "I mean… I wish I could say I was surprised…" he tells her with more than a little attitude.

Now _she's_ getting pissed. "Not that it's _any_ of your business, but he's letting me stay in his spare bedroom… you know, since I very suddenly found myself homeless," she spits out.

She doesn't know what he expected her to say, but he looks a little stunned by her words. He lets out a sigh and runs his fingers through his hair as he tries to figure out how to respond. "You're… _you're_ the one that left… you don't _have_ to be homeless," he reminds her.

She rolls her eyes at him. "Do you really think I'm just going to suddenly be okay with you cheating on me? And lying about it? Because I'm not," she tells him.

"Andy, I'm sorry," he tells her with a desperate look on his face. "I'll make it up to you. I'll do whatever it takes. Please," he begs.

"No, Luke. No. There is nothing you can do," she replies. "Look, this isn't even about the cheating anymore… We weren't good together. I wasn't happy," she admits.

He is stunned, but still not deterred. "You were happy. I know you were," he argues.

"Not happy enough to get married," she clarifies.

"This is about Swarek, isn't it? You're together, aren't you?" He asks.

She lets out a large sigh and shakes her head. "Luke, we're done, okay? There is nothing left to discuss," she adds.

"Just tell me… how long after we broke up did you start fucking him?" Luke asks. "Or were you doing it all along?"

"Fuck you," she growls before stomping away. When she gets into the passenger seat and buckles her seatbelt, Sam stares at her for a moment, waiting for her to say something.

"What are you waiting for?" She asks, more than a little annoyed.

"Nothing," he replies, before starting the squad car. They ride in silence for roughly twenty minutes before Sam just has to ask

"You okay?" He questions with some obvious hesitance.

Her expression softens and she feels a little guilty for being so short with him. "Yeah," she sighs. "Sorry I yelled at you, I just… Luke cornered me in the parking lot," she confesses.

"Yeah, I noticed," he replies. "What'd he say?"

"He's not too thrilled that I'm staying with you," she divulges.

"Well, he doesn't really have a say anymore," Sam shrugs.

"Yeah. And then he asked me how long I waited until I started fucking you and if it started before we broke up," Andy confesses.

"Uh… wow," Sam stutters.

"Yeah, he's such a douche," Andy replies.

"He's just lashing out," Sam rationalizes.

Andy turns to look at him with wide eyes. "It sounds like you're defending him!" she accuses. "God, it seems like you're always on his side," Andy adds, causing Sam's eyes to widen.

"What? Of course I'm not on his side. Why would you say that?" He asks.

"Because! Because for the past year, every time I've had a doubt or complained about him, you would always go on and on about how great he is. Every time, there was a problem between us, it's like you were _trying_ to patch it up. It's like you _want_ me to be with him for some reason," Andy rambles on.

Okay, now he is seriously stunned. He quickly pulls the car over and turns to look at her. "Andy, I never _wanted_ you to be with him. I mean, I've never really been his biggest fan and I never thought he was good enough for you, but I just… it seemed like he made you happy and… I _want_ you to be happy," he explains. When she doesn't say anything, he decides to keep going. "And it's not like I think you should take him back or anything, I just don't want you to let what he says bother you," Sam explains.

"Yeah… yeah, I know," she says, finally starting to calm down. "I just can't believe he would say that to me… after everything he's done," Andy muses.

"Well, like you said- he's a douche," Sam says with a grin, causing her to chuckle.

And suddenly, everything is good again.

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"I _really_ appreciate you guys doing this," Sarah says as the kids are greeting Andy and Sam a couple days later.

"Are you kidding? Pretty sure McNally is more excited than the kids are," Sam quips. "She dragged me to three different stores to get ' _supplies'_ for tonight," he explains.

"Supplies?" Sarah asks with a raised eyebrow.

Sam shrugs. "Well, apparently my DVD collection needed Toy Story 3, Up and Shrek. Oh and we needed better popcorn since mine is not the ' _right'_ kind… and for some reason we needed six bottles of Elmer's glue, glitter, food coloring, a bag of flour, baby oil…" he lists.

"It's so we can make moon sand and galaxy slime!" Andy exclaims as if it's the most obvious thing in the world.

"Well Sammy, I think you're in for quite the night," Sarah smirks at her brother.

"Yep. Pretty sure you two are gonna owe me for this one," Sam tells his sister and brother-in-law, causing them both to laugh.

"Have fun," she sing-songs. "Kids, be good for Uncle Sammy and Andy!" she calls over her shoulder before disappearing out the door with her husband.

"Okay guys, we are gonna have _so_ much fun tonight!" Andy declares.

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"Okay kids, what should we do next?" Andy asks once she's finally got everyone cleaned up. Yeah, it turns out that making moon sand and galaxy slime is kind of a messy project. He's probably going to be finding glitter in his kitchen for weeks, but for some reason, he's kind of okay with it.

"Uncle Sammy, can we have a tea party? Like last time?" Kayla asks as she bats her little eyelashes. He swears, she knows exactly what that does to him.

"Last time?" Andy asks with a look of pure amusement radiating from her face.

"Not a word, McNally," he says with a glare.

She chuckles and then goes through the motions of zipping her lips shut and throwing away the key.

"Please Uncle Sammy," Kayla begs as her lip starts to pout. Yep, she definitely knows what she's doing.

"Honey, you didn't bring your tea set," he reminds her as he gets down on her level.

"Oh yeah," she remembers as her shoulders droop in disappointment and honestly it breaks his heart a bit.

"It's okay, sweetie. Why don't we watch a movie? We got Toy Story 3!" Andy announces, coming to his rescue.

"I love Toy Story 3!" she perks up.

"Me too!" Nathan exclaims.

"Perfect. To the couch!" she says as she leads the way. "Oh and I think you should make us some popcorn, Uncle Sammy!" she calls over her shoulder, causing him to laugh. He grumbles about it for a moment, but of course, he does exactly what she asks.

"Andy! Look at me!" Nathan yells as he's dancing around the living room when Sam walks in with a big bowl of popcorn.

"Wow, you're a really good dancer," Andy compliments as Sam sits down beside her and offers her some popcorn.

"I think my nephew's showing off for you, McNally," he says quietly. And she tries not to let him see the shiver that goes down her spine when his breath hits her ear, but she doesn't do a very good job at concealing it. "I think somebody's got a little crush," he continues with that teasing tone of his.

She lets out a laugh and sticks her hand into the popcorn bowl. "Okay, come on guys. Lets start the movie," she tells them. Both kids hop onto the couch and starts digging into the popcorn as Andy presses play.

"You know, your Uncle Sammy has never seen Toy Story! Can you believe that?" She asks them.

"Really? Toy Story is the best!" Nathan squeals.

"Mhm!" Kayla agrees with several nods.

"We probably should've made him watch 1 and 2, huh?" she muses. "We're gonna have to explain the _whole_ movie to him," she says, acting as if it's the most annoying thing in the world, although he knows she's secretly finding it amusing.

"Uncle Sammy, the toys are alive, but… but they pretend they're dead except when the humans leave! And Woody is the cowboy. And Buzz Lightyear is an astronaut and there's Mr. Potato Head and Mrs. Potato Head… and there's a Slinky Dog and a Dinosaur!" Nate explains, excitedly.

"And Jessie!" Kayla chimes in.

"Jessie is a cowgirl," Nathan explains.

"Wow," Sam replies.

"Sh! It's starting," Andy tells him, causing him to roll his eyes.

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The kids don't even make it through the whole movie before passing out on the couch with Nathan snuggled up on Andy's right and Kayla snuggled up on Sam's left.

"You're really good with them," Andy muses as she turns the movie off and flips it to the hockey game she knows Sam is dying to watch.

"So are you," he tells her, eliciting a smile.

"You ever think about having kids?" She asks, a few minutes later.

"Uh… I don't know. Maybe someday," he shrugs. "Sarah's only been hounding me about it since the day Nate was born… wants them to have lots of cousins," he informs her.

"Ah, yeah that sounds like her," Andy replies with a chuckle.

"What about you? You want kids?" Sam asks, turning his head to face her.

"I don't know… I'm not sure I'd be good at it," she shrugs.

"Really?" He asks, incredulously. "Pretty sure I know at least two little ones who would strongly disagree."

"Babysitting for a few hours is a little different than having someone rely on you for the rest of their life… I didn't have the best parental role models growing up," she reminds him.

"Well neither did Sarah and she's a great mom," he points out.

"Yeah, but that doesn't mean I would be," she replies.

"Andy, you are the most compassionate person I know. I have no doubt you'd be a great mother," he assures her.

She smiles at him. "Thanks… You'll be a great dad someday, too," she tells him.

"You think so?"

"Yep… I can totally see it," she muses. "You act all tough, but I bet you'd be putty in their hands… like you are with them," she says, gesturing to the two little people sharing the couch with them.

Seeing him with Sarah's kids- it's like seeing a entirely different side of him. His normally gruff exterior completely melts away the second they walk into the room. And she's always sort of suspected that he's a bit of a softie, but actually seeing it is quite a different experience.

The way he utterly adores them- it's ridiculously sweet. And it's obvious that the feeling is completely mutual.

It's surprising how amazing he is with kids. But then again, it's really not _that_ surprising.

It's actually not difficult to picture. Sam lying in a tiny kid-sized bed with Kayla on one side and Nate on the other while he reads them a bedtime story- with funny voices and all. Sam taking them to the park and pushing them on the swings or running around in the grass playing tag. Sam having tea parties with Kayla and her teddy bears- maybe he'd even use a funny accent. Sam building the kids a swing set in their backyard while they watch on in anticipation. Kayla giggling and standing on Sam's feet while he dances around the living room. Sam giving them piggy back rides everywhere they go.

She can see it all. And honestly, it kind of makes her smile.

"Oh and I can only imagine how you'd be when your daughter starts dating," she laughs, obviously amusing herself with the images floating around in her head. "Or the first time you meet one of Kayla's boyfriends," Andy adds.

"Ugh. Let's talk about something else… anything else," he pleads, causing her to laugh.

"Okay. So… tell me about this tea party," she smirks.

"McNally…" he warns.

"Did you dress up?" She asks. "Was it just the two of you or were her stuffed animals invited?" she quips.

"You know… I know where you sleep," he reminds her with a raised eyebrow.

"I'm just kidding! I think it's really sweet," she tells him.

"I am not _sweet_ ," he argues.

"Yeah, you kind of are," she replies. "But don't worry, I won't tell anyone," she grins, causing him to roll his eyes.

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Hope you liked it!

As always, please review!


	7. Christmas Spirit

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"So… got any plans for Christmas?" She asks him as they sit on the couch one morning, sipping their coffee and watching television in their pajamas.

"I usually spend a couple days at Sarah's," he replies.

"Oh that's nice… that you get to spend time with Sarah and the kids," she says.

"Yeah," he nods. "You know, if you wanted to… come with me, I know the kids would love that," he tells her, attempting to sound nonchalant.

She gives him a big grin and for a moment, he really thinks she's going to say yes, but then she lets out that sigh that tells him otherwise. "I'd love to, but I'm working the early shift and then I'm making dinner for my Dad," she explains.

"Oh. Right. Yeah, of course," he responds, trying his best not to sound disappointed. "Well, if you want to have dinner with your Dad here, you're more than welcome to," he tells her.

"Yeah? That would be great actually. Thanks," she says with a smile.

"No problem," he tells her.

"So… what did you get them?" She asks a moment later.

"Huh?"

"The kids. For Christmas," she clarifies.

"Oh, yeah I haven't gotten them anything yet. I should probably go do that today," he decides.

"Okay… want some company?" She asks.

He turns to look at her and gives her a smile. "Sure."

"Okay, give me twenty minutes to shower and change and we can go?" She suggests.

"Sounds good."

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"Okay, so which one are you thinking for Kayla? The Barbie tricycle, the Unicorn Pogo Jumper or you could always go with the tried and true Easy Bake Oven," Andy suggests as they stand in the middle of the toy store.

"Uh…" Sam begins. "I don't know. What do you think?" He asks as he scratches at the back of his neck.

"Hm… Well, I don't know, she's probably a little too young for the Easy Bake Oven. Sarah would have to supervise and help her with it, so I guess I would say the Trike… she can ride it around inside or in the backyard and- Oh! Wait, no! _This_ is what you have to get her!" she exclaims as she points to a frilly little treasure chest sitting a few feet away.

"What is it?" He asks.

"It's a cute treasure chest with dress up stuff in it! She'll love it! Little girls _love_ dress up, Sam… Look it even has that cute little plastic jewelry in it and little tiaras. Oh and fairy wings! And look, it has a feather boa and a tutu and look at those cute little dresses," she says as she points at the pictures on the packaging. "Yes, this is definitely it!" she continues with way too much excitement.

"Okay McNally," he says with an amused laugh. "Put it in the cart."

She shoots him a big grin and places the chest in the cart. "Sam, she is going to love this. She can dress up for your tea parties now!" she says with just a hint of a tease.

"Funny," he says with a roll of his eyes. "Are you ever going to stop bringing that up?" He asks.

"Probably not," she quips, causing him to roll his eyes again. "Sam, I'm just kidding," she tells him. "I actually think it's really sweet," she assures him, eliciting a smile. "Okay, so I'm pretty sure I know exactly what you should get Nathan," she tells him as she starts walking away, assuming that he'll follow.

He lets out another laugh and follows her through the aisles until she finds the shelves full of remote control toys.

"Aha! Here!" she declares as she picks up a box to show him. "Perfect right?" She asks with a pleased smile.

"What is it?" He wonders as he examines the box.

"It's an interactive dinosaur!" She exclaims, as if he should know exactly what that is.

"A what?" He asks.

"It's basically like a remote control pet dinosaur, but _way_ better! You can teach it how to dance, roar, chase and spin around. And it can sense where you are, so it'll follow you around like a real pet. And his eyes change color depending on his mood and he reacts when you pet him or pull on his tail. Leo has one and he _loves_ it. It's perfect, don't you think?" She asks.

"Yeah, actually it is… He'll love it," he tells her, earning himself a big smile. "Definitely gonna be favorite uncle this year," he declares.

"How many uncles do they have?" She questions.

"Troy has a brother… He has a pool," he explains with a roll of his eyes.

She lets out a laugh. "Well, good thing we really stepped it up in the gift department then," she teases.

"Good thing," he agrees.

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"Pull over!" she demands on their way home from the toy store.

"What? Why?" He asks, glancing over at her.

"Sam! Pull over!" she tells him.

"Okay, okay," he agrees as he pulls into the parking lot just a few feet ahead. Before he even has a chance to ask her what's going on, she's hopping out of the car and shutting the door. So, of course, he follows her.

"McNally, what are you doing?" He asks.

"Christmas trees, Sam!" She exclaims as she points to the sign behind him. When he turns around, he notices that they have, in fact, pulled into a Christmas tree farm.

"Seriously, McNally?" He whines. "I don't need a Christmas tree. I'm not even going to be here on Christmas," he reminds her.

"Sam, you _need_ a Christmas tree!" she tells him with her hands on her hips.

"I really don't think I do," he argues.

She lets out a groan. "Well, _I'm_ going to be here on Christmas, so I'll buy the Christmas tree," she declares before walking towards the little hut that stands on the property.

He rolls his eyes, but he follows her anyway.

"Hello!" a little old woman greets them from behind a small counter.

"Hi, I'd like to buy a Christmas tree," Andy tells her with a genuine smile.

"Wonderful!" she exclaims. "The axes are right behind you and you can grab a sled outside to help you carry the tree back. Just let me know when you've found one and you can pay on your way out," the woman explains.

"Wait, we have to cut down our own tree?" Sam asks, incredulously.

"C'mon Sam! It'll be fun!" Andy tells him, excitedly, as she grabs at his wrist and starts pulling him towards the door. And Jesus, when is he going to figure out how to say no to her? He sees the old woman looking at him out of the corner of his eye with an expression of clear amusement. Yeah, even she can tell how much of a sucker he is when it comes to her.

It's about twenty minutes later when Andy finally settles on a tree.

"You sure?" He asks. "Once I start cutting it down, you can't change your mind," he reminds her since she's already changed her mind more than once.

"Yep. This is definitely it! It's perfect, don't you think?" She asks.

"Yeah, it's great," he tells her, less than thrilled. He immediately starts chopping down the tree as Andy watches on.

"You're pretty good with an axe for a city boy," she observes.

"Well, I'm a man of many talents, McNally," he tells her as he meets her eyes for a second. And he swears, he sees her blush.

"Oh I'm sure you are," she replies with a slightly flirty tone.

He lets out a chuckle and takes another swing. "Okay, back up. This thing is going down any second," he warns her. She takes a few steps back and watches as Sam takes one more swing, which causes the tree to fall to the snow-covered ground. Then, Andy and Sam quickly work together to lift the tree on to the sled.

"I can take that," she offers when she sees Sam start pulling on the sled.

"It's okay, I got it. Can you take the axe?" He asks as he offers it to her.

"Sure," she agrees as she takes it from him. They start walking back to the hut together in relative silence, until Andy eventually speaks up. "So I assume you don't have any decorations," she says.

"Not really," he replies.

"All of my Christmas decorations are in storage at my Dad's house… If you want to stop there on the way home, we can grab a few things," she suggests.

"Sure," he agrees.

"So you really _never_ get a Christmas tree?" She asks, still in disbelief over the whole thing.

"Well, like I said… I'm not usually here on Christmas," he reminds her with a shrug.

"Yeah… I don't know, I've always loved Christmas trees. The lights and the ornaments and that amazing pine smell," she tells him.

"Yeah, I guess having a tree won't be so bad," he agrees as they walk up to the hut.

"Oh, you found one!" the woman exclaims as she meets them outside. "Great choice," she compliments, as she gestures for them to come inside. "So, that will be $65," she tells them as she steps behind the counter.

Andy reaches for her wallet, but Sam grabs her arm to stop her. "I got it," he tells her when she looks up at him.

"Sam, I said I'd pay for it," she reminds him.

"Andy, I got it," he tells her again, shooting her that look that says the discussion is over.

"Okay," she gives in. "Thank you," she says with a smile.

"You're welcome," he replies with a smile of his own.

===========Roommates===========

"What are you doing?" Sam asks as he finds Andy in the kitchen. He just finished getting the tree in the stand and giving it some water when he realized that Andy had disappeared.

"I'm making eggnog!" she tells him as she adds a couple teaspoons of vanilla into the pot.

"It's four o'clock in the afternoon," he responds.

"So?" She asks as she adds a few more dashes of cinnamon and stirs.

" _So_ … isn't it a little early for eggnog?" He asks.

"We're working the afternoon shift tomorrow… and you can't decorate the tree without eggnog!" she explains as if it's the most obvious thing in the world.

"Oh. Right. What was I thinking?" He asks, sarcastically.

"Who knows?" she replies. "Now. Please tell me you have some bourbon."

He playfully rolls his eyes and reaches for the cabinet above her head, getting way too close to her as he grabs the bottle of bourbon. When he looks down and notices just how close he is, he takes a step back and hands her the bottle.

"Um. Thanks," she says with a small smile, as she looks away from him.

He gives her a small smile and watches as she adds a generous amount of bourbon to the eggnog.

"Okay and now for my secret ingredient," she declares as she saunters over to the cabinet that holds his spices and grabs what she's looking for.

"Chili powder?" He asks when he sees what she's picked out.

"Trust me. You'll never drink it any other way ever again," she guarantees as she puts a dab in this pot, mixes it up and then pours the eggnog into two glasses.

"Here you go," she says as she offers him the glass.

"Thanks," he says as he grabs the glass from her and takes a sip. "Wow, that's… really good," he compliments.

"I know," she grins before taking her own sip. "Now, let's go decorate our tree!" Andy exclaims as she heads into the family room where Sam set up the tree. "Oh wait!" she says, stopping in her tracks.

"What?"

"We need music!" she tells him as she pulls out her phone and puts on a Christmas channel on Pandora.

"Is that really necessary?" He grumbles.

"Sam! Yes! You need to get into the spirit!" she insists.

"Whatever you say, McNally," he placates as he opens the box of Christmas decorations and starts to pull out the Christmas lights.

===========Roommates===========

About thirty minutes later, they've untangled all of the Christmas lights, wrapped them around the tree and have started to hang ornaments. And they've each had two full glasses of eggnog.

"Thanks for doing this," she tells him as she pokes through her box of ornaments, trying to find her favorites.

"Hm?" He asks, distractedly.

"The tree," she clarifies. "I know it's not really your thing, but I appreciate you doing this with me," she continues.

"It's actually kind of nice," he admits, eliciting a big smile. The truth is, he's actually really enjoyed decorating the tree with her. _Their_ tree.

"And you know… I've been wanting to thank you for everything else, too… Letting me stay here, making me feel... welcome and just… always being there for me," she tells him.

"Andy, it's really not a big deal," he assures her.

"It is, Sam. Seriously," she tells him. "You know, when I moved in with Luke, I never felt at home there… I always felt like I was invading his space. Like I was a guest in his house, you know? And… here… I don't know… you've just never made me feel that way. I've always felt comfortable and that's because of you… I just want you to know how much I appreciate that," she adds.

He's really not sure what he's supposed to say so he just gives her a small smile and a nod.

"You're just… you're pretty great, you know that?" She continues. Yeah, maybe she's feeling that eggnog already.

"Yeah, I think I've been told that once or twice," he quips with a big grin.

She lets out a laugh and playfully rolls her eyes before becoming serious again. "You know, who would've thought when we first met that you would be the most stable man in my life right now?" she muses.

"Hm… yeah, didn't exactly see that coming," he agrees, keeping his tone light.

She nods. "I'm just… I'm really glad that you _are_ in my life, though," she tells him, definitely taking him by surprise.

"Me too, McNally," he tells her with a smile, once the shock wears off.

===========Roommates===========

Please review!

Oh and check out my newest story! I just posted it yesterday, so if you haven't read it yet- you should!


	8. Sleepovers

==========Roommates==========

"I told you we should've ordered from T.C's," she whines. "DeMarco's takes _forever_ ," she adds. "And I'm _starving_ ," she tells him, dramatically.

"Eat a snack, McNally," he suggests.

"I don't _want_ a snack. I want _pizza_ ," she retorts.

"Then suck it up," he replies with a laugh.

"Hmph," she pouts as she impatiently taps her foot on the ground.

He's just about to open his mouth and say something when his doorbell rings and Andy bounces in the air and skips all the way to the door.

"Finally!" she exclaims when she's halfway there.

Although, when she opens the door, it is _not_ the pizza delivery man standing in front of her. It's Boyd.

"McNally… Of fucking course," Boyd scoffs as he puts his head in his hands. "I should've known," he adds as he shakes his head.

"Boyd," she replies dryly. "What are you doing here?"

"What are _you_ doing here?" He retorts.

Before she has a chance to respond, she hears Sam walking towards her.

"What's taking so long, McNally?" Sam asks as he walks up beside her to investigate. "Boyd," he states when he sees the detective standing on his stoop.

"Seriously Sammy? _She's_ why you won't go under? Seriously? You're throwing away your career for a _rookie_?" He asks, walking past her and into the house. She shuts the door and just stares at the two of them, still completely stunned and extremely confused. What the hell is Boyd talking about?

"Her name is Officer McNally and she has _nothing_ to do with this," Sam insists. Although, it's not exactly the truth.

"I _knew_ you were sleeping with her," Body says with a shake of his head.

"I am _not_ sleeping with her," Sam replies. And suddenly Andy just wants to run and hide. It's as if they have completely forgotten that she's standing right there and can hear everything they're saying.

"Right. Just friends. Of course," Boyd sneers.

"Boyd, what the hell are you doing here?" He asks, obviously frustrated.

"Come on Sammy. You know I'm not going to let you pass this up. You know I'm right… the uniform's a straightjacket for you… I need an answer by tomorrow or it'll be too late," he tells him.

"You already have my answer," Sam reminds him.

"Sammy, come on. You're really going to pass this up? I know you. You live for this," Boyd says.

"Boyd, you have my answer, okay? I'm not changing my mind," Sam replies.

Boyd lets out a sigh. "Fine. I tried. Don't come crawling to me when she sees something shiny and dumps you and you realize what a mistake you've made," Body tells him.

"Bye Boyd," Sam tells, gesturing for him to leave.

He shakes his head and starts walking towards the door. "I hope you realize what he's giving up for you," he tells Andy when he walks by her. She is still completely confused. She glances over at Sam, but he's still watching Boyd.

Once he's out the door, Sam shuts it and starts walking back towards the kitchen. Andy follows and finds him grabbing another beer from the fridge.

"Um… what was _that_?" Andy asks as she watches him take a big sip of his beer.

"Nothing," he says.

" _Sam_ ," she says, telling him that she's not going to let this go.

He sighs. "Boyd wants me to go under and he's having trouble taking no for an answer," he explains, rather vaguely.

"Why don't you want to go?" She asks. "I thought this is what you wanted."

He stares at her for a moment, obviously considering his words, but then a smile appears on his face. "Can't leave you alone in my house, McNally. You'd probably burn the place down," he teases.

She rolls her eyes, but then she starts to wonder if there is a little more truth to his words than he's letting on. She wouldn't put it past him to decline Boyd's offer because he feels guilty for leaving and making her go back to sleeping on Nash's couch.

"Sam, you know if you wanted to go, I could just stay with Traci… or my Dad… I don't want you to turn down this opportunity because of me," she tells him.

He lets out a big sigh. "Andy, this isn't about you. I just don't want to go. Undercover just isn't my life anymore," he tells her.

"Since when?" She asks with a quirked eyebrow.

Another sigh. "Look, I'm happy patrolling the streets and I'm used to sleeping in my own bed… and Sarah needs me. And Nate and Kayla… they are old enough now to realize when I'm gone. The thought of pretending to be someone else… it used to be exciting, but now… when I think about going under, I just think about how I'll have to sleep in some uncomfortable bed in some crappy apartment and spend all of my time with the scum of the earth… It's just not really appealing to me right now," he explains.

She nods, seemingly taking him at his word. "Okay. I just don't want you to have any regrets," she replies.

"I know… I don't," he assures her.

"Okay."

==========Roommates==========

It's two o'clock in the morning when she wakes up in a panic. Her heart is racing and tears are gushing down her face. There's only one thought going through her head. She needs to find Sam.

She gets out of bed, still a bit disoriented and stumbles down the hallway as her eyes against to the darkness. As she makes her way to Sam's bedroom, she can't stop the images from flashing through her head. It just felt so real. And honestly, she's still not entirely convinced that it wasn't.

She tries to shake the thoughts from her mind as she knocks on Sam's bedroom door. She hears him grunt and immediately feels a huge sense of relief at hearing his voice. She opens the door and stands in the doorway as she watches him lift his head and squint his eyes to look at her.

"You okay McNally?" He asks, but the second his eyes adjust and he can see her face, he knows she isn't. "What's wrong?" He asks as he sits up in his bed. She just stands there, not saying anything as she focuses her gaze on her feet.

"McNally? Come here," he says, patting the bed beside him. She thinks about it for a moment before eventually walking over and sitting on the bed beside him.

"Sorry, I woke you… I just… I'll let you go back to sleep," she says, shaking her head. She's finally starting to wake up and now that she is, she's realizing just how weird this is. Yeah, she really needs to go back to bed. She's not a child, she can't just go running to him when she has a nightmare.

But, as she goes to stand up, he grabs her wrist to stop her.

"Andy, what's wrong?" He asks again.

She turns to face him and sees the look of worry on his face. And she knows him well enough to know that he isn't going to let her leave until she admits what's bothering her.

"I just… I had a nightmare," she admits with a shrug.

He nods his head in understanding. "What happened?" He asks, as he soothingly runs his hand up and down her back.

She stares at him for a moment and takes a deep breath before deciding to just tell him. "You went undercover and then you went missing and… and eventually we found… we found your body," she explains before she starts to nervously nibble on her bottom lip. "I know it's stupid, but I just had to make sure it was really a dream," she confesses.

"It's not stupid," he assures her, still running his hand up and down her back.

She nods her head, but stays silent, still chewing on her bottom lip.

"Andy, I'm not going undercover. I'm fine. You don't have to worry," he tells her as he tilts his head to try and meet her eyes.

"I know," she says, softly as she finally looks up at him.

"Do you want to try going back to sleep?" He asks a minute later.

"Yeah," she agrees with a nod. But instead of getting up out of his bed like he expected her to, she just gets under his covers and rests her head on his pillow. He tries to hide his surprise the best he can, but seriously- she is in his bed right now.

"Have you ever had any close calls while you've been under?" She asks as she watches him lie down beside her.

"A couple… but I was able to talk myself out of it," he replies.

She nods and just stares at him for a moment. "You really aren't going?" She asks softly.

"No McNally, I'm not going," he assures her. "Now, go to sleep," he suggests.

"Okay," she nods. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight."

==========Roommates==========

When his alarm goes off the next morning, he's pretty surprised to find her still lying in his bed. He figured she'd sneak out at the crack of dawn, but she's still lying right beside him.

"Morning," she says when she notices him looking at her.

"Morning," he replies as he sits up and stretches a little. "You okay?" He asks.

"Yeah… thanks for… letting me stay here last night… Sorry if that's weird," she says with a little blush spreading up her neck.

"It's not weird," he lies. Yeah, it's definitely a little weird. Good weird, though.

"Okay," she says, still obviously a bit uncomfortable.

"Let's grab some breakfast at Amelia's before shift," he suggests, knowing it's her absolute favorite. He's completely out of the way, but he just really wants this to stop being uncomfortable.

She grins. "Really? It's not really on the way," she reminds him.

"Well, then we better hurry," he replies with a bit of a smile.

"Okay!" she exclaims excitedly as she bounces out of bed and makes her way towards her room, leaving him sitting there and laughing a bit as he watches her.

And suddenly, everything is back to normal.

==========Roommates==========

Hope you enjoyed!

Please tell me what you think!


	9. Fitting In

==========Roommates==========

"Uncle Sammy!" Nathan and Kayla yell in unison as they run towards Sam, who's standing in the doorway. He immediately picks them both up in each arm and hugs them.

"Hey guys," he greets them as they wrap their skinny arms around his neck.

"Where's Andy?" Nathan asks.

Sam lets out a laugh. "She's at home, buddy. She's celebrating Christmas with her Dad," he explains.

"But I want her to have Christmas with us," he says with a frown.

"Me too!" Kayla chimes in.

"Kids, Andy is spending time with her family. That's what you're supposed to do on Christmas, remember?" Sarah asks as she walks into the room. "Maybe Uncle Sammy will call her later and you can wish her a Merry Christmas," Sarah suggests as Sam puts both kids back on the ground.

"Can we, Uncle Sammy?" Nathan asks.

"Sure, buddy," he says with a smile.

"Yay!" Nathan says as he skips into the other room with his sister following closely behind.

"Barely been here three seconds before they start asking about Andy," he says with mock annoyance.

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure Nathan has a bit of a crush," she says with a laugh. "Andy really has a way with the Swarek men, doesn't she?" Sarah teases, causing him to roll his eyes. "Well, maybe you bring her next time," Sarah offers casually.

And for a minute, he actually thinks about it. He imagines spending Christmas with her at his sister's house. And yeah, he doesn't hate the idea. But then he comes to his senses and pushes the thought out of his head.

Luckily, Sarah changes the subject by pulling him into a hug. "Merry Christmas, Sammy," she says.

"Merry Christmas, Square," he replies.

"Dinner is going to be ready in half an hour. Do you want to go bring your stuff to your room and get settled?" She asks.

"Yeah, sure," he agrees before grabbing his duffle bag and heading upstairs to the guest room. He quickly tosses the bag onto his bed and pulls his phone out of his pocket to text Andy.

 _Been here three seconds and the kids are already asking about you._

He hits send and starts to unpack a few things until he hears the sound of his phone vibrating on the dresser.

 _Ooh is somebody jealous?_

He smiles as he imagines her words being said with that teasing tone of hers.

 _No._

He replies quickly, but then he starts typing out another message.

 _But you have made quite the impression, McNally._

It's barely two seconds later that his phone is vibrating again.

 _I always do._

And before he can type out a reply, he gets another text from her.

 _Say hi to everybody for me_

 _Will do, but the kids were kind of hoping for a phone call later. You free?_

And once again, he receives her reply just a moment later.

 _Can't wait. Is 7 okay?_

 _Perfect. Talk to you then._

After he presses send, he stops to think for a second. It should be weird, right? That his niece and nephew are so attached to her. That they want to spend Christmas with her. Yeah, he's pretty sure that this should be weird. But somehow, it isn't.

It's moments like this that it just hits him- how she just _fits_.

How perfectly she fits into his life, into his home, into his family.

It all just feels so normal, so effortless, so natural.

Eating breakfast with her in the morning. Fighting over the remote at night. Driving home after shift. Babysitting his niece and nephew together. Spending the day with his sister.

It should feel weird, but it doesn't.

It's as if life has always been this way. It's as if she's always been sitting at his kitchen table sipping coffee when he wakes up or riding shotgun in his truck before and after shift or watching movies on his couch with his niece and nephew tucked on either side of her.

It shouldn't be like this. It shouldn't be this seamless, but it is.

===========Roommates===========

"Hi Andy!" Nathan says into the phone as Sam sits on the couch with both kids on either side of him. He's holding his cell phone out in front of him and has it on speaker phone so everyone can hear.

"Hi Andy!" Kayla quickly pipes in.

"Hey guys!" Andy says. And Sam can tell by the sound of her voice that she is grinning.

"Merry Christmas!" the kids say together.

"Merry Christmas!" she replies. "Are you guys excited for Santa?" She asks.

"Yes!" They answer together.

"Did you ask him for anything special?" She wonders.

"Dinosaurs!" Nathan exclaims.

"I want Barbies," Kayla declares.

"Wow, good choices," Andy replies.

"When are you coming to visit?" Nathan asks as he tries to scoot even closer to the phone, so he's practically on top of Sam.

"Hmm… I don't know. Maybe you should ask your Uncle Sammy," she teases.

"Uncle Sammy, when is Andy gonna visit?" Nathan asks as he sticks out his lower lip in a bit of a pout.

Sarah laughs at him from across the room, clearly amused by the whole thing.

"Whenever she wants," he replies. Yeah, if she's going to throw him under the bus, then he's going to give it right back.

"Can you babysit again?" Kayla asks.

"Yeah!" Nathan agrees.

"You know, I think that's a great idea," Sarah laughs from across the room.

"Can we sleepover this time?" Nathan wonders as a big grin overtakes his face. "Can we, Mom?" He pleads.

"Of course. I know Uncle Sammy _loves_ sleepovers," Sarah says, as Sam narrows his eyes at hers.

"Andy's gonna sleepover too, right?" Nathan asks.

"Of course, I love sleepovers!" she exclaims. "I think we should build a fort and camp out in the living room," Andy suggests.

And God, Sam is desperately trying not to roll his eyes at what he's gotten himself into.

"Can we, Uncle Sammy?" Nathan asks, giving him this ridiculous pleading look that is just about impossible to say no to.

"Sure, buddy," Sam agrees.

"Tomorrow?" Nathan suggests.

"Not tomorrow, buddy. We'll figure it out with your mom, okay?" He says.

"Okay," he concurs.

"Okay guys, well we need to start getting ready for bed, so why don't you say goodnight to Andy," Sarah instructs.

They both say their goodnights and then head upstairs for a bath, leaving Sam and Andy on the phone together.

"Do you have any idea what you've gotten us into?" He asks her once he's sure the kids are out of earshot.

"Oh c'mon, it'll be fun," she replies.

"So that's a no," he jokes.

"It'll be great," she tells him.

"Yeah sleeping on the floor in my living room with two little kids kicking me all night. So much fun," he grumbles. Although, if he's being honest, he's actually not _too_ upset about the whole thing. He did really enjoy the last time they babysat together.

"They are so adorable," she says, changing the subject.

"Good genes," he quips.

"Yeah," she says with plenty of sarcasm. And he can hear the eye roll all the way from Toronto.

"Well, I better go help Sarah with the bedtime stories," he says a few seconds later.

"Bedtime stories? Really? Do you do the funny voices and everything?" She asks, clearly amused.

"Of course, McNally… what's a bedtime story without the funny voices?" He teases.

She laughs. "Goodnight Sam."

"Night Andy."

===========Roommates===========

The next morning he's sitting on Sarah's couch watching the kids play with their new toys, when he flips his phone open to text Andy.

 _Presents were a success._

He breaks out in a smile when his phone starts vibrating seconds after he presses send.

 _Told you_

 _Can't believe I ever doubted you._

He presses send and starts to watch Nathan walk in circles as his new pet dinosaur follows him around until his phone vibrates.

 _When will you learn? =P …So when you coming home?_

 _Miss me already?_

He presses send and watches Kayla rifle through her treasure chest, trying to figure out what to try on next. Eventually, he feels his phone vibrate.

 _Funny._

 _Lol. I'm coming home tomorrow… My house still in one piece?_

"Look Uncle Sammy, when I pull his tail he gets angry!" Nathan exclaims with a big grin as he demonstrates by pulling the dinosaur's tail.

"Wow, buddy… Pretty cool," Sam replies as he feels the vibration in his hand.

 _Yes, jerk._

 _See you tomorrow, McNally._

He presses send as he watches Kayla twirl around in the sparkly tutu she just put on.

 _Drive safe._

===========Roommates===========

"Andy?" He calls out when he opens his front door.

"Hey!" she yells from the kitchen. He carries his duffle bag inside and places it on the kitchen table. "Have a good time?" She asks as she walks towards him.

"Yeah… How was dinner with your dad?" He asks.

"Good," she replies. "What's all of this?" She asks, pointing to the large paper bag Sam carried in with him.

"Oh. Sarah and the kids sent me home with some stuff for you," he says with a smile as he starts to dig through the bag.

"Ooh… what is it?" She asks with a grin.

"Cookies," he says as he pulls out a Tupperware container of Sarah's Christmas cookies.

"Cookies? Really? That's so sweet," she says as she reaches for the container.

He quickly pulls it out of her reach. "But you have to share," he tells her with a pointed look.

"Okay," she says with a laugh as Sam passes her the container. She opens it, takes out two cookies, passes one to Sam and then takes a bite out of hers. "Wow… so good," she comments with her mouth still full.

"I know," he says before taking a bite. Once he finishes chewing, he starts to dig through the bag again. "The kids also made these for you," he says as he pulls out some drawings.

"Oh that's so cute!" she exclaims as she grabs the drawings and studies them. "Oh my God… Is that supposed to be us?" She asks with a laugh as she holds up a picture of two stick figures holding hands with gold badges on their chests.

"I think so," he says with a laugh.

"God, they are so adorable!" she squeals.

"I told you, it's those Swarek genes," he says with a laugh.

"Yeah, guess so."

==========Roommates==========

This one isn't my favorite, but I hope you guys like it!

Let me know either way!


	10. Friends?

==========Roommates==========

It's about 10:30 P.M., when she saunters over to him while he's pouring himself another drink. And Jesus, he's still a little bit blown away by how she looks in that dress. When she appeared in his kitchen wearing it a few hours ago, he was barely able to string a sentence together. Yeah, she looks really good.

"Hey," he greets her as she stands beside him and starts pouring herself a drink.

"Hey," she says. "I hope you know you're kissing me at midnight," she mentions as if it's the most normal thing in the world.

He turns to her with a quirked eyebrow. "Oh yeah?" He asks as he tries to figure out whether she's serious and also just how much she's had to drink.

"Yep… I mean… I'm not kissing Dov, so…" she teases.

Sam hmms before taking a sip of his scotch.

"What are you saying you _don't_ want to kiss me?" She asks with mock offense as she turns to face him.

"I didn't say that," he replies. The truth is, it's pretty much all he wants to do.

"Good, because I mean… we already know it'll be good," she tells him.

"Oh we do?" He asks with a smug look on his face.

"Uh… _yeah_ ," she responds as if he's being a complete idiot.

"Yeah, I guess you're right," he agrees.

"That's what I thought," she declares, causing him to let out a laugh. "Well, I guess I'll see you at midnight, Swarek," she says with a grin.

"Guess so," he agrees.

==========Roommates=========

The next time she finds him, it's just over a minute before midnight and he's walking out of the bathroom.

"Hope you didn't think I was gonna let you off the hook," she tells him with a grin.

"Uh… no?" He replies.

"Good, because you owe me a kiss," she reminds him, as if he actually needed reminding. He's had trouble thinking of anything else ever since she mentioned it an hour and a half ago.

"Well, lucky for you I always honor my debts, McNally," he quips.

"Oh good. For a minute, I thought you were hiding from me," she teases as the countdown begins out in the living room.

"Nope. Not hiding," he assures her as he steps a bit closer to her.

"Good because I _really_ didn't want to get stuck kissing Dov," she says with a playful smirk as she wraps her arms around his neck.

"Well, don't worry. I'm here to rescue you," he teases as his hands land on her waist and he pulls her even closer.

They stand there like that, in Jerry's hallway, secluded from everyone else, as they listen to the countdown in the other room. Suddenly, it's midnight and he's pushing some hair behind her ear, cupping her jaw, leaning in and kissing her.

And yeah, he maybe takes advantage of the situation a little and continues to kiss her. And when she doesn't seem to mind, he ends up walking her backwards a few steps until she's up against the wall. Then, he's coaxing her mouth open and stroking her tongue with his. And she's definitely kissing him back and even making a little bit of noise. And he knows he needs to stop soon, but he just wants to enjoy it for a few more seconds.

Eventually, he pulls away and just looks at her for a moment, reading her eyes to make sure she's not annoyed or something. And she isn't. She's a little out of breath, but she's actually smiling, so he figures he's not in trouble.

"See it definitely wouldn't have been that good with Dov," she jokes, causing him to laugh.

"Hm… well, I guess I'll take that as a compliment," he says as he takes a step back from her.

"Yeah, just don't tell him I said that," she replies.

"Yeah, some guys just have fragile egos," he quips.

"Exactly," she grins.

==========Roommates=========

"You coming to the Penny tonight?" Traci asks as they change in the locker room after shift.

"I can't. Sam's sister is dropping off Nathan and Kayla at six for a sleepover," she explains as she slips her t-shirt over her head.

"So?" Traci asks as she zips her jeans.

" _So_ , I told them I'd be there. We're building a fort and camping out in the living room," she says with a smile.

"Uh wow, that's… cute," Traci comments.

"What is?" Andy asks, turning towards her.

"You and Sam having a sleepover with his niece and nephew… You do realize that's something a girlfriend would do, right?" Traci asks with a smile.

"What? We're friends… Friends can do that kind of thing," Andy argues.

"Oh because you would do that with Chris or Dov?" Traci challenges.

"That's different," Andy counters.

"How so?"

"I don't know… I'm staying with him and… and they're really cute kids… and they asked me to," she reasons. Although, even she knows that her excuses are kind of lame.

"Okay…" Traci says, obviously not buying anything she's saying.

"I've had sleepovers with you and Leo. How is this any different?" She asks.

"C'mon Andy. It's Swarek. You know it's different," Traci claims. "You think he would do this with anyone else?" She asks.

"Okay. _Again_ , they asked me to. It wasn't Sam's idea," she maintains.

"So, what? You're saying there's nothing between the two of you?" Traci asks. "Andy, you went to his nephew's birthday party," she reminds her.

"Sarah invited me," Andy reminds her.

"And you babysat with him… And he invited you to his sister's house for Christmas!" Traci exclaims.

"He was just trying to be nice," Andy rationalizes.

"And what about that kiss the other night?" Traci grins.

"It was New Year's Eve! That's what you're supposed to do!" Andy exclaims.

"You said it was the best kiss you've ever had," Traci reminds her with a smirk.

"So? It was a great kiss," she shrugs. "You can have a great kiss with a friend," she shrugs.

"Okay, okay… whatever you say," Traci says, realizing that Andy's not going to give in. "Have fun with the Swarek's tonight," Traci says with a big smirk before walking out of the locker room.

Andy lets out a big sigh and continues getting dressed, all the while wondering if maybe Traci is right.

==========Roommates=========

"Sam! We need more blankets! And pillows!" Andy calls to him from inside their makeshift fort. She hears him laugh before he goes in search of what she's asking for.

He quickly grabs a few blankets from the hall closet and a couple pillows from his bed before making his way back to the living room. And as he's walking down the stairs, he overhears a conversation between Andy and the kids.

"Andy?" Nathan asks.

"Yeah, sweetie?" She replies.

"How come you're not Uncle Sammy's girlfriend?" He asks.

"Yeah, how come?" Kayla pipes in.

"Um… because we're friends," Andy offers, hoping that will appease their questions. Although, she's not holding her breath.

"But don't you think he's handsome?" Kayla wonders.

"I think he's very handsome," Andy tells her. And yeah, even though there's a strong possibility she's only saying that because it's what they want to hear, he can't help the smile from appearing on his lips.

"And fun?" Kayla asks.

"Really fun," Andy says with a smile.

"And don't you like him?" Nathan adds. .

"Of course I do," Andy replies.

"Then how come you don't want to be his girlfriend?" Nathan asks. "I bet he'd be a really good boyfriend," He adds.

Andy lets out a laugh. "I'm sure he would," she agrees. "But for right now, we're just friends," she explains.

"But maybe someday you'll be his girlfriend?" Nathan wonders.

"Well… uh… who knows what'll happen," Andy replies.

And uh yeah, that's… interesting.

He takes a moment to let her words sink in before making his way over to the fort. He lifts the blanket and bends over to get inside before placing the blankets and pillows on the ground. But it's as if he's completely invisible because their previous conversation just continues as if he's not even there.

"I bet Uncle Sammy wants you to be his girlfriend," Nathan declares. Sam shoots Nathan a confused look before his gaze lands on Andy, who is giving him an amused smile.

"Oh yeah?" Andy says. "Why's that?" She asks as she shoots a smirk at Sam.

"Because you're really nice and fun and pretty," Nathan explains. "I bet Uncle Sammy thinks you're pretty," Nathan tells her.

"Do you, Uncle Sammy?" Kayla asks as she turns to face her uncle. Okay, so apparently, he isn't invisible.

Andy is still staring at him with this ridiculous smirk on her face. She obviously thinks this is making him uncomfortable, but she also has no idea what he just overheard.

"Of course I do," he answers simply, as if it's nothing. And he can see the surprise on Andy's face. And yeah, he's pretty sure he sees her blush.

For a moment, he thinks about letting this conversation continue, but then he decides that he probably shouldn't push his luck. Who knows what'll come out of their mouths next?

"Okay guys, it's getting late, we need to finish this fort if you want to have time for stories before bed," he tells them. And after a bit of grumbling, both kids eventually agree.

==========Roommates=========

Please review!

I have today and tomorrow off from work, so I'm hoping I'll be able to get a bit of writing done and hopefully at least one more update.


	11. Dreaming

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She doesn't need to get up for shift for another hour, but she's feeling all kinds of restless and she can't sleep. She lets herself toss and turn for another ten minutes before she eventually gets out of bed and makes her way to the kitchen.

After taking a thorough stock of the refrigerator, she decides that she's going to make omelets for breakfast. She chops up some green peppers and onions, grates a bit of cheese and dices up a couple pieces of ham before she works on breaking the eggs.

As she is whisking them, she suddenly feels a pair of strong arms wrap around her waist and a chin resting on her shoulder.

"Morning," he says in that low, slightly hoarse, morning voice of his.

"Morning," she replies with a smile as he starts to place a few kisses from her neck to her collarbone. "Mm…" she says at his touch. She feels the smile against his skin and he kisses her a couple more times until he gets to her shoulder.

"Making us breakfast, McNally?" He asks. And she can't see, but she can hear the grin in his voice.

That's when she decides to turn around to face him. She wraps her arms around his neck as he leans in to give her a proper kiss her.

"You know, waking up without you in my bed is a kind of disappointing start to my day," he tells her when they pull away.

"Oh yeah?" She says with a laugh.

"Pretty much," he smirks.

"Hm… Well, let's see if we can turn it around," she flirts as her hands travel down his body.

"I think it's probably salvageable," he grins as his fingers sneak up under her shirt. He quickly pulls it over her head and tosses it aside before starting to kiss her neck once again. His hands are immediately all over her and it's making it a little bit hard to concentrate. And then her breath gets caught in her throat as his fingers start to travel lower and lower and lower.

And then she wakes up.

She immediately sits up in her bed, still panting a bit.

Jesus.

She just dreamt about…

Jesus.

What is wrong with her?

Yeah, they shared that steamy kiss on New Year's Eve, and yeah, she's been kind of thinking about it a lot more than she should, but they were drunk and it was midnight. They're supposed to be friends.

God, seriously- what is wrong with her?

She needs a cold shower. Like now.

==========Roommates=========

"You okay?" He asks over breakfast. And of course he decided to make omelets. Seriously, this kind of thing would _only_ happen to her.

"Huh?" She asks, jumping out of her haze. She just can't stop thinking about that dream. The way his hands felt on her. The way he kissed her. The things he said. And it seemed like they were… together. And it was kind of…nice.

Jesus.

"You're being really quiet," he comments.

"Oh… just tired," she shrugs, unable to look at him. Yeah, she's having a lot of trouble looking at him right now. She's sure that if he looks in her eyes, he'll know that she was dreaming about him. And if she looks in his eyes… well, she's not sure what she'll do.

"You sleep okay?" He asks.

"Yeah. Fine," she replies.

"Okay…" he says, obviously not believing her. "The omelet okay? You're not really eating," he notices.

"Um yeah, it's good," she tells him as she takes a few big bites. It's just that with every bite, she is instantly taken back to her dream.

"You sure?" He asks. And she can hear the worry in his voice and it just makes her feel guilty. She knows she's acting weird, but she just can't help it. She just needs to get away from him for a little while.

That's when she picks up her phone and sends a quick text to Traci.

 _Rescue me._

"Yeah, it's delicious. Thanks for making breakfast," she says with a smile as she chances looking up at him. And she can immediately feel him studying her eyes, so she looks back down and takes another bite of her omelet.

"Got any plans before shift?" He wonders, after a few minutes of silence. They're working the night shift tonight, so they've got more than a few hours to kill.

"I think I'm going to hang out with Traci," she mentions. And right on cue, she receives a text from her best friend.

 _On my way._

Andy lets out a sigh of relief before she even realizes she does it.

"Okay… Need a ride?" He asks.

"No, she's coming to pick me up. I better go get dressed. Thanks for breakfast!" she says as she gobbles up the rest of her omelet, jumps out, puts her plate in the dishwasher and darts out of the kitchen, leaving a confused Sam Swarek sitting at the table.

==========Roommates=========

"Okay, so what happened?" Traci asks as Andy gets settled in the passenger seat of her car.

"Huh?" Andy replies.

"Why'd you need to get rescued? Swarek being an ass?" Traci wonders.

"No, no… I um… I just needed to get out of there," Andy says uneasily.

"Why?"

"Okay. I'm uh. I'm going to tell you something, but you can't make fun of me or laugh or say I told you so," Andy warns.

"Okay…" Traci agrees, suspiciously.

"I… I had this… dream about Sam last night," Andy explains as her face starts to turn a little pink.

Traci does her best to school her features, but Andy can see the amusement cross her face. "Um… wow," Traci says. "What happened? In the dream?"

And exhales loudly and begins to explain. "I was making omelets for breakfast and he walked in the kitchen and wrapped his arms around me," she says, pausing for dramatic effect. "And he started telling me that waking up without me in his bed was a crappy start to the day… and then I told him I'd _make_ it up to him," she says with another dramatic pause. "And then we kind of started kissing and undressing each other and then I woke up," she tells her.

"Wow."

"Yeah… and then he actually made omelets for breakfast!" Andy exclaims.

Traci starts to laugh and after Andy glares at Traci for a good minute, she eventually joins in and starts to laugh, too. It is actually pretty funny.

"It's just a dream, right? It doesn't have to mean anything," Andy rationalizes when the laughing finally dies down.

"C'mon Andy. It _means_ something," Traci disagrees.

"We spend so much time together; he's obviously attractive… it's not _so_ crazy that I would have a dream like this," Andy reasons. "In high school, I had a dream that I made out with one of my best friends and I wasn't attracted to him or anything… it was just a dream. This kind of thing just happens sometimes… It isn't a big deal," she says, trying her best to convince herself.

"Andy, you _want_ Swarek… why are you still fighting it?" Traci asks as she pulls into their favorite coffee shop.

Andy considers it for a moment and then exhales. "I… I don't know," she admits.

==========Roommates=========

I know it's short, but I hope you enjoyed it all the same. The next chapter will be much longer, I promise!

Please review! I always look forward to hearing everyone's comments!


	12. Weird

Borrowed the general idea of a bachelorette party and Andy wearing a candy necklace from "According to Plan" by ewells4, but I went a different way with it.

Enjoy!

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He really doesn't like how things have been between them recently.

It's just been awkward and he has no idea why. It's like she's being careful around him for some reason. And he catches her looking at him sometimes, but every time he does, she instantly looks away.

He just doesn't get it and she won't talk to him. He's asked her a few times, but she just looks at him like he's crazy and this is all in his head.

And yeah, he really doesn't like it.

And now she has this bachelorette party tonight. Some girl from 27th division that she went to the academy with.

And yeah, he knows he has no right to feel jealous, but he does. He knows bachelorette parties can sometimes get out of hand and with how weird things have been between them, he's just uneasy about the whole thing. Especially considering the conversation he overheard between Nash and Peck the other day during parade. Nash was recruiting Peck to help her get Andy to have some fun at the bachelorette party. According to her, Andy desperately needed a night of drinking, dancing and "hot sex with some random guy she'll never have to see again." And yeah, Peck completely agreed.

So basically, Sam hasn't thought of much else since. That's why he tells her he'll give her a ride home even though it'll probably be after 2AM. And she refuses for a while, but he eventually convinces her that they don't have to work tomorrow, so he'll be up.

And yeah, even if they did have shift tomorrow, he would probably be up worrying about what kind of trouble his rookie was getting into. He just can't help it. The images going through his head- he wants them to stop.

So, he tries his best to pass the time. He works much later than he needs to, finishing up all of his paperwork for the last two shifts. And then he spends an hour and a half at the gym, trying to work off all of this nervous energy he can't seem to shake. And then after he showers and changes his clothes, he sits at the bar for the next four hours, even though he can't drink much. Still, he allows himself four beers while he listens to Oliver's stories and plays a few rounds of darts.

And then she finally calls around 1:30AM.

"Hey," he answers once he gets outside the Penny, so he can hear her.

"Hey!" she squeals. And yeah, she's drunk.

"You need a ride?" He asks, hoping that she's not calling to tell him otherwise.

"Yeah, Melanie bailed and went to see her fiancé. And Gail went home with some guy and Traci's mom is watching Leo and I didn't really know anyone else there so I took a cab home with Trace. Can you pick me up at her house?" Andy asks, once she's done babbling on.

"Sure," he agrees as he lets out a breath. And it's not like he _actually_ thought she'd go sleep with some random guy she met at the club- he really didn't think she was the type- but still, he's… relieved.

"You're the best!" she exclaims.

He lets out a laugh. "See you in a bit, McNally."

So, he says goodbye to Oliver and Jerry and heads over to Nash's house to pick her up.

It's about ten minutes later when he's knocking on Traci's front door, figuring he shouldn't ring the doorbell and risk waking up the kid.

Traci answers rather quickly with a big grin on her face. "Andy, your chariot is here," she sing songs with a giggle.

Sam rolls his eyes and follows her inside. "Nice necklace," he comments as he eyes the ridiculous beaded necklace with a big penis shaped shot glass that Nash is wearing.

She looks down at it, as if she forgot she was wearing it and then grins. "Thanks!" she replies before she leads Sam into the kitchen to find Andy.

"Sam!" Andy squeals when she sees him. She runs over and gives him a big hug, which is a bit surprising, but he rolls with it. Things have been so weird between them lately, he honestly can't remember the last time they even touched.

"Hey," he says as he hugs her for a second. "Have fun?" He asks as she pulls away.

"So much fun!" she says, rapidly nodding her head. And now that she's not so close to him, he can finally get a good look at her. She got ready at Traci's beforehand so he didn't see her and yeah, she looks really good. She's wearing this little black dress that hugs her in all the right places and really shows off her long, tan, legs. And yeah, he has to physically shake the inappropriate thoughts from infiltrating his head.

"Okay, good… you ready to go home?" He asks.

"Yep. Bye Trace," she says as she hugs her best friend. "Let's go," she says to Sam.

"Bye Nash," Sam says before following Andy out of the house.

==========Roommates=========

"Thanks for picking me up," she tells Sam as they walk into his house.

"No problem," he says with a shrug as he reaches into the fridge and grabs her some water. "Here," he says as he hands it to her. She smiles and takes a big sip.

"So what'd _you_ do tonight?" She asks.

"Went to the Penny," he replies.

"Oh. Cool," she responds as she takes another sip of water before putting it down on the counter.

"So… what's up with this?" He asks, taking a few steps towards her and gently tugging at the brightly colored candy necklace that's wrapped around her neck.

"Oh, it's just one of those cliché bachelorette party favors… It's stupid… but I almost got stuck with a glow in the dark penis necklace, so I'd say this isn't so bad," she says with a laugh.

"So… what? Guys are supposed to eat the candy off your neck or something?" He asks, not entirely pleased with the idea of random men eating things off of her.

"Yeah, I guess," she shrugs.

"It looks like there's quite a few pieces missing," he observes.

She laughs. "I may have eaten some," she admits. He lets out a breath of relief and chuckles a bit. "They're surprisingly good!" she argues.

"Oh yeah?"

"Yeah… Wanna try?" She asks. And that tone of hers- he's pretty sure she's flirting with him. And yeah, he'll play along.

"Well, how can I say no to surprisingly good?" he wonders.

"I don't think you can," she replies with a smile. "Go for it," she says as she tilts her head a little to the side, exposing her neck. And he is a bit surprised. He figured she'd take the necklace off or maybe stretch it out away from her skin, so he wouldn't literally be eating candy off of her neck, but no, she's expecting him to just… Hm. Well, what the hell?

He wiggles his eyebrows a bit and throws her a smirk before he takes a couple steps closer to her.

She stands still and waits with baited breath, wondering what he'll do next. He uses one hand to slowly push her hair out of the way while the other lands on her waist. Then he leans in and nibbles on a piece of candy. She lets out an involuntary hum when his lips incidentally graze her neck and she can feel him smile against her skin. She tilts her head even further to give him more room while her hand somehow makes its way up his chest. That's when he forgets about the candy and just gets lost for a moment, placing kisses up and down her throat. Then he's nipping at her skin and she's encouraging him with the noises coming out of her mouth. And yeah, that is- wow. Moments later, she's grabbing his belt loops and tugging him even closer, so he's flush against her. Her breathing picks up and she cups his face to get her lips on his. When his fingers graze the skin under the hem of her shirt and he slips his tongue in her mouth, she lets out a whimper.

It's a minute later when she bucks her hips against him, that he finally wakes up. He quickly pulls away and closes his eyes, trying to gain back some of his self-control. "Andy…" he begins, shaking his head slightly.

When he opens them, he just sees her looking up at him with a confused look on her face.

"We… we shouldn't," he tells her.

"What? Why not?" She asks. And he can see that hurt flash through her eyes.

"Andy, I… I want to. God, I _really_ want to," he assures her. "I just… you've been drinking. You're not thinking clearly," he tries to tell her.

"Sam, I didn't even drink that much. I'm fine. You're… you're not taking advantage of me if that's what you think," she tells him.

"It crossed my mind," he admits.

"Well, you're not," she assures him.

He lets out a sigh. "Look, I just don't think it's a good idea… I don't want you to have regrets," he replies as he runs his hands down her arms. He can't help but think about how weird things have been between them already and all of this… it would likely make everything so much worse.

"Yeah, okay," she says with a defeated tone. "I guess I should probably just go to bed then," she tells him, before she turns to walk away, suddenly embarrassed by the whole thing.

It's that look on her face and the tone of her voice that makes him reach out for her before he can even comprehend what he's doing. "Andy," he says, pulling her to a stop.

"Hm?" She says, turning around to face him. That's when she feels his lips on hers again and suddenly, he's got her wrapped up in an all-consuming kiss.

When he eventually pulls away, they are both breathless. He brushes his nose against hers as his thumb grazes her cheek.

"Tomorrow, if… if you still want… this. Us," he says, gesturing between the two of them. "Then… you know where to find me," he tells her with a smile. And he really hopes he's not making a huge mistake right now, but that look on her face before… it seemed like she wasn't so opposed to hearing something like this.

"Yeah?" She asks with a grin.

"Yeah," he confirms, trying to tame back his own smile.

"Okay," she agrees, as her lips are still turned upward.

"Okay," he repeats before he watches her walk towards her room.

==========Roommates=========

Don't forget to review!


	13. Surprise

Sorry this took so long to post. I meant to post it days ago, but work has been insane this week. I've been getting home late and when I do get home, I literally just want to lie on the couch and do absolutely nothing.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy this!

==========Roommates=========

When she wakes up the next morning, her mind is still a little groggy, but it's only a minute or two before the events of last night start flashing through her head. His hands on her hips, his mouth on her neck, his tongue stroking hers. And then his words. _Tomorrow, if you still want this- us, then… you know where to find me_.

She blow out a long breath as her mind starts to spin. She spends the next five minutes analyzing everything that happened between them in the past eighteen months. All of the ways he was there for her. All of the ways he earned her trust. All of the ways he listened to her, helped her, taught her, supported her.

In the past, she's always picked the wrong guy, but Sam has spent the past eighteen months unwittingly proving to her that he's the right guy.

Yeah, she still wants it.

That's when she jumps out of bed and quickly brushes her teeth and combs her hair before changing into a v-neck top that makes her boobs look awesome and a pair of little cotton shorts. Yeah, it's freezing outside, but she knows her legs are her best asset.

She immediately finds him sitting on the couch watching television and when he hears her walk in, he glances up at her. "Morning," he says with a barely-there smile.

He's letting her off the hook and she knows it. He's going to pretend that last night never happened because he thinks that's what she wants.

But it isn't. Not even a little.

So, she simply walks over to him with purpose and doesn't say a word as she straddles his lap and wraps her arms around his neck, while he sits there looking completely stunned.

"I still want it," she says before she presses her lips against his.

And he's so shocked that it takes him a moment to catch up, but when he does, he wraps his arms around her and pulls her even closer. He lets one hand travel up her back until it reaches her hair, allowing his fingers to get tangled up in it.

She lets out a quiet moan as he slips his tongue in her mouth while her hands roam under his t-shirt. Moments later, she lifts it over his head, causing them both to briefly break away. She lets her eyes rake over his chest and gives him a small smile before she goes to kiss him again. That's when his hands slip under her shirt and run up her back, creating goosebumps in their wake.

"Sam?" She says in a half whisper, half gasp right as he starts nipping at her neck.

"Hm?" He murmurs against her skin.

"Bedroom." She says with a little more certainty.

He pulls away from her and meets her eyes. "Andy, you sure?" He asks.

She smiles and leans in to kiss him again before getting off his lap and holding her hand out to him. "C'mon," she says with a reassuring smile.

He returns the sentiment as he grabs her hand and gets off the couch before allowing her to lead him to his bedroom. Eventually, she stops right beside his bed and looks up at him. "Sam, I'm sure," she tells him with a smile as she wraps her arms around his neck.

"Andy… if we do this… there's no going back," he warns her.

"I know," she assures him. "I don't want to go back," she adds with a smile.

He cups her face and looks into her eyes for a moment, obviously searching for something. And apparently he finds what he's looking for because seconds later, he's pulling her in for another kiss.

She stands on her toes to deepen it while his hands travel down her body and land on her ass. He gives her a gentle squeeze, causing her to let out a tiny whimper.

 _ **(A/N- Starting now, everything before the next set of bold letters is rated M, so please skip it if that's not your thing!)**_

That's when she decides they are wearing way too much clothing. She takes a small step back so she can get her hands in between them and then she starts to push his sweatpants down his legs. He helps her out and steps out of them while her hand squeezes his cock through his boxers. He lets out a groan and quickly removes her shirt and shorts.

He takes a second to appreciate the sight of Andy McNally wearing nothing but a bra and underwear before his hands land on her ass again and he picks her up. She wraps her legs around his waist as he makes his way to the bed and gently lies her down. Then, he crawls on top of her and starts kissing his way up her throat before he begins nibbling on her ear. And yeah, she _really_ likes when he does that.

He can feel her getting a bit impatient as her fingers dig into his back a little. So, he slips a hand behind her and quickly unhooks her bra before pushing the straps off her shoulders and exposing the two most perfect breasts he's ever seen. He tosses her bra aside before he cups both breasts and takes a nipple in his mouth.

And it's all starting to make her a little delirious- his warm hands and mouth all over her. So, she starts bucking her hips at him, making them both groan at the contact.

That's when he pulls away and gets back on his knees so he can pull her underwear down her legs. She helps him out a bit by lifting them in the air, allowing him to pull them completely off with ease. And once he tosses them aside, he crawls back up her body, placing kisses along the way. And when he gets to her lips, he uses a finger to tease her down there- tracing patterns around the place she desperately wants to be touched.

"Sam…" she whines as he's back to nibbling on her ear.

And that's when he decides to stop torturing her and opens her up a bit. The second he touches her clit, she lets out the most amazing sound. He didn't think it was possible, but he's even harder now.

He uses his thumb to rub circles around her while his finger slips inside, causing her to pant and moan and writhe under him.

"Sam. Jesus," she gasps. Her hands tremble as they make their way down his chest until they stop at the top of his boxers. She pushes them down his legs and uses her toes to get them all the way off. And as she gets closer to him, his whole body freezes.

When she wraps her hand around the base of his cock, he can't help the groan that leaves his lips.

When she slowly runs her hand all the way to his tip, she lets out a huff. "Figures," she says with a playful roll of her eyes and a smirk on her face.

He meets her eyes and lets out a laugh. Yeah, he doesn't hate to hear that. Like at all.

He slips his finger out of her and hovers over her for a second. "Last chance to back out," he warns her.

She gives him a smile and lifts her head to kiss him. "No thanks," she whispers as she guides him towards her.

When he pushes inside, he keeps his eyes on her face the entire time, and he's not disappointed. She squeezes her eyelids shut, throws her head back and opens her mouth a bit as she lets out a gasp. After the image is burned into his mind forever, he cups her face and starts to kiss her while slowly pulling himself out and then pushing back in, eliciting another gasp from her mouth. And he continues like that for a bit, going a little faster with each and every thrust until he's built up the perfect rhythm.

She wraps her legs around his waist, allowing him deeper inside and it makes both of their heads spin for a second.

Eventually, the fog clears from his brain and he returns his attention back to her neck, already knowing that it drives her a bit crazy. And as he starts to suck on her skin, his bedroom fills with a plethora of appreciative noises.

"Oh… Oh God," she moans as he starts to go a little faster. "Sam," she gasps as she digs her fingers into his back.

"Jesus. Andy," he groans as she starts to clench around him.

Several minutes later, he lets his hands travel down her body, taking a moment to cup her breasts before he gets a hand in between her legs.

"Shit. _Sam_ ," she groans as he teases her clit. She's biting down on her bottom lip and he uses his other hand to pull it out from between her teeth, causing her to open her eyes and look at him. He gives her a smile before he leans in and kisses her. It only takes another second for him to slip his tongue in her mouth, allowing it to dance with hers. And he swallows a few enthusiastic noises from her mouth that way, but eventually, he can feel her getting close. The way she's clenching down on him and tightly shutting her eyes and breathing really heavy. Yeah, she's definitely close.

So, he adds a bit of pressure to her clit and rolls his hips a little, which turns out to be the exact right thing to do because she starts to convulse almost immediately.

And with all of the noise she's making and the way she's squeezing him so tight, it's just a few more thrusts before he's spilling inside of her.

Once it's over and he's finally caught his breath, he's just praying that it won't be awkward, that he didn't just fuck everything up between them, that it will all be okay.

And when he goes to pull out of her, she wraps her legs around him even tighter. "Stay," she tells him as she meets his eyes.

He gives her a smile. "Okay," he says before leaning in for a kiss. And while he meant for it to be a quick one, she instantly wraps her hand around the back of his neck to keep him there, so he keeps kissing her until he literally can't breathe.

 **And when he eventually pulls away and sucks in some air, their eyes meet and they smile at each other.**

"Well, that didn't suck," she says with a grin and a laugh, which he quickly returns.

"No, it didn't," he concurs.

"Can I tell you a secret?" She asks as her eyes widen a bit.

"Yeah."

"It's possible I've maybe wanted to do that for like… a while," she confesses, shyly.

And yeah, he knows he's not doing a good job of hiding the shock on his face, but he is… shocked. He always felt like there was something between them, but to be honest- sometimes he was pretty sure it was all just in his head… like he was imagining something that wasn't there because he just wanted it so badly. So, to hear her actually say that she wanted him- it's… yeah, it's surprising.

But then he sees that his silence is making her feel uncomfortable and he quickly tries to school his features and act a little bit more normal.

"Well, all you had to do was ask, McNally."

==========Roommates=========

Hope everyone liked this! Please review!

FYI, this story is coming to an end… The next chapter will be the last and then there will be an epilogue that will have one or two parts- I haven't finished writing it, so I'm not sure yet.

If you have any suggestions, please send them my way!


	14. Moving On

I'm kind of regretting not just ending the story last chapter, but I already promised two more, so if this sucks, just pretend I didn't even write it

==========Roommates=========

"Can I ask you something?" He wonders as they lay in bed together that night.

"Sure," she replies as she props herself up on an elbow to meet his eyes.

He exhales and takes a moment to consider his words. "Uh so… recently, it seemed like something was kind of… off with us… you were just acting so weird around me and I guess I'm just wondering why," he tells her.

She immediately closes her eyes and cringes before she moves to hide her face in her hands.

"What are you doing?" He wonders as he pulls her hands away from her face.

"I was hoping you didn't notice," she admits, still looking very uneasy about this conversation.

"How could I not?" He asks, eliciting a shrug from the naked woman in his bed. "So are you going to tell me _why_ you were acting so strange?" He probes.

"Um… no," she says with a nervous laugh.

"No? Why not?"

" _Because_ … it's embarrassing," she confesses. "And you're going to get all cocky about it," she adds.

"What?" He asks, obviously confused.

She lets out a sigh and starts to pick at the bed sheet. "Can't we just forget about it?" She proposes.

"Uh… no…" he tells her, causing her to roll her eyes. "Andy c'mon, just tell me," he implores.

She takes a deep breath and then meets his gaze. "Okay, I'll tell you, but after today, we are never talking about it again," she demands.

"Fine," he agrees.

She takes a deep breath and mentally prepares herself for what she's about to do. "Um so last week… I sort of… had this dream about you," she admits.

"What kind of dream?" He asks with slightly furrowed brows.

"You _know_ what kind of dream," she accuses with another roll of her eyes.

"Hmm…" he says as he tries to tame down the grin that's threatening to slip out.

"Shut up!" She says with a laugh as she covers her face with her hand. "I hadn't had sex in a while and we're always together and you walk around shirtless all the time, it's not _that_ weird!" she tells him after he pulls her hand away from her face again. "It was bound to happen!" she adds.

"Oh yeah?" he says with a smirk.

She lets out another laugh and shakes her head at herself. "Stop enjoying this so much!" she tells him.

"I can't help it," he replies with a shrug. "Are you gonna tell me what happened in this dream?" He wonders.

She rolls her eyes at him before she answers. "Nothing really."

"Andy… C'mon, tell me," he implores.

"I'm serious. I woke up right before we did anything," she informs him. "It was just… foreplay," she admits with some embarrassment.

"Hmm… and how was it?" He wonders as he rolls her so she's lying on top of him and then starts running his hands down her body.

"Not as good as the real thing," she says with a smile.

"Oh yeah?" He asks as he pinches her ass.

"Yeah," she says with a nod before she leans in and kisses him.

"Still. I don't know why that would make you act so weird," he tells her when they pull away.

"It was embarrassing! And I felt like if you looked at me you'd be able to tell!" she tells him with some exasperation.

Sam hmms as he pushes some hair out of her face.

"Okay. I told you. Now can we _please_ talk about something else?" She pleads.

"Sure," he shrugs, although he would much rather keep talking about this.

Then an awkward silence falls over them and Andy averts his eyes as she plays with the hair on his chest.

"Something specific you wanted to talk about?" He asks, picking up on the weird vibe she's giving off.

"Um yeah… I guess… I mean… I guess I'm just wondering _what_ exactly we're doing here," she says, unable to hide the nervousness piercing through her.

"What do you mean?" He asks as his hands stop their exploration of her body.

"I mean… is this… are we... are we _together_?" She wonders.

"Is that what you want?" He asks as he runs his fingers through her hair.

She briefly looks up and meet his eyes. "Yes," she admits.

"Okay. Then… yes," he says with a smile.

"Yes?" She asks, feeling the need to repeat his words.

"Yes… Andy, I want the same thing," he tells her. "I thought that was kind of obvious," he adds.

"Just checking," she says with a smile before she leans in to kiss him.

==========Roommates=========

He's pretty sure she's onto him. He's really not doing a good job of being discrete.

Yeah, he's pretty sure that's why she started asking Traci to look at condos with her.

The last couple times he went with her, he made it his mission to point out every flaw. He's not exactly proud of it, but he even made a couple things up.

He just really doesn't want her to move out, which he knows is completely crazy. He barely even recognizes himself right now- wanting to live with his girlfriend so badly that he's making up termite damage and tilted floors. Yeah, he's being completely insane, but he just can't help it. He likes living with her. He likes waking up and falling asleep next to her. He likes cooking dinner together. He likes driving to and from work together. He just wants her here all the time.

He does know they can't _actually_ live together. Not on and real and permanent basis. He knows it's way too soon, but he's just not ready for her to move out yet. He's just enjoying her being here way too much.

So when she tells him that she thinks she found a place, he's not happy.

"You know… you don't _have_ to move out," he blurts out when she gives him the news.

And yeah, she looks absolutely stunned. "What are you… are you asking me to live here… permanently?" She asks like it's a completely ridiculous thought.

"Well, I mean… I like having you here," he shrugs. "Very convenient," he adds, just in case she's really freaked out and he needs to play it off as a joke.

"Oh how sweet," she comments with a playful roll of her eyes.

He lets out a breath and decides to just be honest. "Andy, I'm… I'm serious. I don't want you to go."

"Sam, that's just… it's too much pressure to put on a new relationship… and I really don't want to mess this up… I want us to work," she assures him.

"Yeah… yeah, I know… I know it's too soon, but I also know that I'm not ready for you to leave yet… I'm just… I'm used to having you here and it's… it's gonna suck without you," he admits.

"Sam, I'll still be here _all_ the time. And you're always welcome at my place. We'll still see each other all day at work and we'll hang out afterwards and we'll stay at each other's places, but I'm just afraid that if I stay here, it'll be too much. We'll get sick of each other… Living together can be really stressful, especially with something so new," she reminds him.

"I think we've been doing a pretty good job so far, don't you?" He asks.

"Yes, but-"

"And it's not like we're just getting to know each other… so this isn't exactly the typical _new_ relationship," he explains. But then he sees that look on her face and he starts to worry that maybe this is too much for her. "Look, I _know_ it's too soon and you should probably get your own place, but I just meant that… you don't have to rush out," he tells her. "You can wait until you find the perfect one."

She lets out a sigh and gives him a smile. "Yeah… yeah, you're right," she tells him before wrapping her arms around his neck and giving him a kiss. "But you've gotta stop making up imaginary problems with every single place I look at!" she tells him when they pull away.

He chuckles a bit before he nods his head in agreement. "Deal."

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"Well, you're all moved in," he announces as he walks back into her kitchen where she just finished unpacking the last box. It only took another five weeks for her to find the perfect place. And he hates to admit it, but it _is_ perfect. It's exactly what she wanted. Lots of open space and plenty of natural lighting. Yeah, it's perfect for her.

"Thanks for all your help," she says as she moves around the kitchen island and wraps her arms around his neck.

"No problem, McNally," he says as he kisses her forehead.

"Oh, I almost forget," she says as she pulls away from him and grabs her keyring that's sitting on the counter. "Your key," she says as she starts to fiddle around with the keyring, trying to get his house key off.

"No, keep it," he says, putting his hand over hers so she'll stop trying to remove it.

"Yeah? You sure?" She asks, looking up at him.

"Yeah," he assures her. "You're always welcome, you know that," he adds.

She shoots him a smile and then reaches into her pocket and pulls out a key. "You're always welcome here, too," she tells him as she hands him the extra key to her house.

He grins as he takes the key from her and then pulls her in for a kiss.

"So… I think when someone helps you move, the protocol is usually pizza and beer, but I was thinking you might prefer a different kind of thank you," she tells him with a seductive smile.

"Oh yeah? What did you have in mind?" He asks as his hands land on her waist.

"Chinese and beer?" She teases.

"Funny, McNally," he says with a roll of his eyes. Meanwhile, his hands kind of have a mind of their own.

"I thought so," she quips, as he lifts her up and she wraps her legs around his waist while he carries her towards the bedroom.

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Hope you enjoyed this. Please review!


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